Dragon Pines
by Montydragon
Summary: Slight AU. After Wendy went missing a year ago with no explanation, Dipper is still looking for her. However, as he continues his relentless search, a mysterious animal begins to terrorize the Shack, leading him to believe that the supernatural truly isn't all it seems...
1. Chapter 1

_Journal Entry 731_

_It's been one year. One year since I heard her laugh. One year since she raced me up the stairs. One year since I thought I was going to see her tomorrow._

_That's a dismal thing to celebrate, huh? The disappearance of someone you loved so much you could have called her your sister. I've always read about people visiting the graves of their loved ones on the death anniversary, but she has no grave. The closest thing we could call her grave is the very woods she disappeared in._

_The Corduroys called off the search last month, 23 days before I arrived here. The police officers didn't want to give up, but Dan apparently was going insane with the very notion that his daughter was still alive. Though most people don't know it, he gives up very easily. Not something you'd expect from the toughest guy in town._

_Grunkle Stan himself actually more or less gave up a week after she was reported missing. He never admitted it, but 7 days after the file was created, he put me and Mabel on double time working at the cash register. Contrary to what my parents think, the saddest day of my life wasn't actually the day I found out she was gone. It was the day that one of my greatest role models decided it was a lost cause._

_I still haven't given up, though. To me, it's exactly the way it was the first week of her absence. According to Mabel, I was in denial then, and I remain in denial now. But I know it isn't denial! I know she's still out there somewhere. She's probably lost or something, and that's why she hasn't come home yet. Or maybe she's being held captive by the gnomes. You never know in this town._

_Speaking of the supernatural, I found some highly unusual footprints about a week ago. I wasn't able to examine them thoroughly in time, because of a quick downpour of rain that night, but they looked bigger than what any rogue dinosaur or shapeshifter could make. There were claw marks, too, and places where it looked like the animal had tried to scratch apart the earth looking for something. Grunkle Stan didn't get out in time to see them, but Soos said it looked like the world's biggest bat made them. Maybe he's right._

_Whatever that animal is, it wouldn't leave the Shack alone. Stan said that he'd been hearing scuffling noises and garbage cans overturning outside around two months before we got here, but whatever it is manages to get in the woods fast enough so that he can't see it. Soos apparently worked late one night and saw something moving outside and growling. Again, he didn't get to see what it was up close. It's almost as though the animal wants us to know that it's there, but doesn't want to be seen. Some of our friends in town told me that the thing's been around for six months or more, staying in the woods and only venturing out at night._

_What kind of creature would do that? Usually, the supernatural animals that are aware of human speculation like to be seen once or twice before vanishing without a trace, but this one is definitely different. It's clearly nocturnal if it only shows its face during the late hours, but that's pretty usual for the supernatural. The only other thing I could really conclude is that it doesn't seem to want to hurt us, especially if it's only letting us catch glimpses of its signs and never attacking._

_As much as I think this animal is interesting, I can't let my focus stray from finding my best friend. Wendy is counting on me. I know she's out there somewhere, and nobody's going to stand in my way of making sure she gets home!_

_Hopefully we have some luck this week. Scratch that, hopefully the animal decides to leave us alone. It's causing too much trouble around here._

Dipper lifted his pen from the paper and sighed heavily. Another day of dodging the mysterious "Shack creature". Another day of trying to find his missing friend. Another ordinary day awaited.

As he walked down the hall, the young detective began to recall the previous events of the week. Sure, the footprints had been exciting, but nothing else stuck out. He had gone out once again to the edge of town to search the woods where Wendy disappeared. Mabel invented some sort of sweater that had a microphone in the sleeve, so she could broadcast whatever she wished to a large group of people at any chosen time. Stan and Soos had changed the tires on the golf cart.

"Hey, bro bro," Mabel called out cheerfully, popping around the banister of the steps and scaring the daylights out of her twin. "What's up?"

"I'm going to look for Wendy," Dipper muttered, pushing her to the side. Mabel turned around, her happy expression fading instantly.

"Dipper," she murmured. "You went to look for Wendy yesterday. And the day before that. And the week before, when we were in Piedmont and you couldn't look for her, you were researching the geography of Gravity Falls and possible areas where she could be."

"I'm not going to stop looking for her, Mabel. She's out there."

Mabel stared at the floor. Dipper immediately winced. _Oh no. Here it comes._

"Dipper, it's been a year. If she were coming back, she would have done so by now." The young detective's sister wiped her nose and gave him a sad look. "She's gone. She isn't going to come back."

"She will," Dipper murmured, breaking the eye contact.

"You need to face it," Mabel whispered. "One year and she hasn't shown up. She's probably run away to Canada, or…" The girl trailed off.

"She isn't dead," the young detective moaned, clenching his fists.

"I'm not saying she is," Mabel replied. "I'm just saying that she isn't coming back."

"She will come back."

"Dipper, she _won't_!" the girl cried. "She's gone!"

"She is not gone!" Dipper growled. "I know Wendy! She wouldn't run away! She wouldn't leave without ever saying goodbye!"

He stared down at his quivering sister. He could see tears appearing in the corners of her eyes, and resisted the overwhelming urge to hug her and tell her it was ok, because it _wasn't_. It wasn't ok.

"Maybe you didn't know Wendy as well as you thought," Mabel finally murmured.

Dipper's muscles froze. He was paralyzed. His sister simply looked up at him, wiping her face with her oversized sweater.

All at once, the spell was broken. Dipper strode past his sister and almost ran out the door, slamming it behind him. He broke into a sprint as he cleared the porch, dashing into the woods as he felt hot, wet water trickling from his eyes.

_She's coming back. She's coming back. I just know it._

Once the boy was out of sight of the Shack, he finally broke down. Dipper slid to the ground, burying his face in his hands and letting the tears run down his face. His body shook with every small sob, every slight cough and cry. Still, the words of his sister echoed through his head.

_She's gone… She isn't coming back… Maybe you didn't know Wendy as well as you thought…_

"You're wrong, Mabel," Dipper choked out. He pulled himself to his feet, forcing himself to continue forward. He wiped his face and pulled his vest up further. He was going to find her. She wasn't gone. She was going to come back. She needed to come back.

As Dipper walked, he noticed that the forest had grown far… quieter, than what would be considered normal. The only sound was the wind in the trees. Not one bird sang, not one squirrel chattered. It was almost as though a great poison had entered the space, killing everything in the path and leaving only silence.

Dipper shuddered. Not his greatest analogy.

The boy stretched and coughed a bit, wiping his still-wet nose. There was still cold in the damp morning air, despite the approaching heat wave of midsummer. His vest provided only minimum comfort against the chilliness of the cool day, and he shivered.

Finally, Dipper reached the area he had left off at yesterday. He pulled out the ragged map he had used in attempt to find Wendy last summer. The poor piece of paper was covered in X's, hastily-drawn lines and the chicken scratch Dipper proudly called his handwriting. The boy sighed and pocketed it. He had searched this exact square mile thirty-nine times last year.

Even so, he started his routine search without any regret. He knew one of these days, he'd find her. All he needed to do was stick with it.

As the day wore on, the sunlight began shimmering through the branches of the trees overhead, warming Dipper and giving him newfound strength. However, his legs were weak as always, and the young detective found himself taking an unnecessary amount of breaks. The trail he had worn through the forest over time was not a smooth one, and some parts took direct climbing to overcome.

Even though he didn't have a watch with him, Dipper knew when lunch had finally come. He hadn't packed himself anything, and wasn't about to eat any mysterious berries that might turn him into a deer-person or something, so the boy sat hungry and alone in the middle of the woods. Mabel, Soos and Stan were probably all chowing down on sandwiches and leftover noodles from last night at the moment. Dipper blushed as his stomach rumbled.

He wasn't about to be discouraged from his search, though. The day was growing wonderfully warm, and Dipper was definitely one to take advantages while he could. He soon encountered a river that he had previously located on the map of Gravity Falls, and stopped to dip his aching toes in the water. Hopefully Wendy had found herself lost here, because the middle of the Gravity Falls forest was a hidden paradise.

The day wore on as Dipper finished up at the river and continued on his trail. As soon as the sun began to set, the young detective set off on his self-planned shortcut home. He hadn't ever tried going this way before, and ended up confirming his path on the map several times to ensure he wouldn't get lost. The woods grew thick in his planned route, and he found it hard to see between them.

The sun was falling fast from the sky, and Dipper found himself expecting the impending darkness far sooner than planned. Still, the woods remained almost creepily silent, void of any animalistic noise at all. The young detective had to admit something odd was definitely going on at this point. He did see a bird flying between a pair of trees perhaps an hour ago, so it couldn't be some sort of wildlife epidemic, but they had no reason to stay so quiet. _No noise, no movement. It's almost as though I'm being followed by an inevitable silence._

After Dipper found himself about a quarter down the long trail, he realized just how unnerving the lack of noise was. He was used to hearing the cheerful chirps of communicating birds and fluttering of bats during sunset. Though it hadn't bothered him much at first, the quiet was definitely taking its toll. The long-term effects of such silence were almost terrifying at this point.

Finally, the boy stopped. He had heard something, something big moving through the forest. It didn't sound like a bear or a wolf, but it was certainly huge, and very fast. The footfalls grew closer and closer, and Dipper backed up against a large pine tree.

"Show yourself!" he shouted, his voice quivering. He realized how big of a mistake he had just made when the tremendously loud sprinting of the animal slowed to a halt, just a few meters from where he was cowering. The creature was concealed by the shadows of dusk, but he could hear the heavy panting of whatever it was. He could have sworn he felt his heart stop. _It was so close._

He timidly turned his head to attempt a glance at the animal, but stopped in horror. The last rays of light were reflecting off a pair of glittering eyes, glaring back at him furiously. The animal shifted, the underbrush rustling underfoot, and the eyes blinked at him almost in curiousity.

Dipper held perfectly still. His journal said that several of the supernatural creatures living in Gravity Falls didn't have the greatest eyesight. However, he could tell by the way the eyes darted and narrowed that this animal certainly could see him.

They stood there in absolute silence for a few more moments. The young detective was centimeters from freaking out right there and then, but his other was almost bored. The animal seemed to lose interest in him, and shook itself loudly before looking away. Dipper breathed a sigh of relief as he heard it lumbering away into the darkening forest.

"That was close," he murmured to himself. He quickly stole a glance behind him before walking into the space that the animal had previously occupied. He could see into it now that he was closer, and widened his eyes as he gazed upon the where the creature had been.

It was a very large clearing, filled with shrubs and moss. A few pebbles littered the ground, but that wasn't what had caught Dipper's attention. Covering the ground were several gargantuan footprints, looking as though they had been gouged into the soft earth.

He bent down and examined them. Each footprint was around one and a half feet long, with huge claw marks perhaps three centimeters away from the points of the toes. They were in a straight line from one end of the clearing to the other, except in the spot where the animal had paused to inspect the younger boy. They looked as though they were made by a huge heron, or a dinosaur of some sort, ruling out Dipper's previous theory of the creature being a supernaturally large mountain lion.

Dipper slowly reached out and ran his fingers along the small grooves across the bottom of the footprints. He could almost confirm that some sort of bird made them. Maybe an ancient giant moa had come back to life or something. It certainly wouldn't be the strangest thing to ever happen in this town. However, Dipper couldn't shake the unusual feeling that he had seen something like this before.

_Of course_! Dipper's eyes widened in realization. These footprints were the same kind that he had found outside of the Mystery Shack! The creature that had just stared him down must have been the same that had been bothering the residents of the tourist trap for the past few months. As the young detective realized he had just missed his chance to see and potentially catch the animal, he facepalmed.

He could have finally found out what that thing was! Even Grunkle Stan, who knew a surprising amount about the supernatural considering he hated it, hadn't been able to identify the strange tracks left behind by the beast. The mystery had been plaguing the boy to the point it was taking his mind off Wendy, and he had just blown it!

The boy hissed a loud curse and pulled his hat over his ears. Hopefully he could follow the animal using the tracks it had left behind. Would Grunkle Stan mind him being just the slightest bit late for dinner? Probably not.

Dipper made his mind up and started running alongside the deep footprints leading out of the woods. Somewhat conveniently, they were going more or less the same direction as the Mystery Shack. That would certainly make it easier for him to get home before the others started to wonder where he was. He briefly wondered how far he would have followed the tracks if they had gone in the opposite direction. Most likely, he wouldn't have gone for more than twenty minutes or so before giving up.

He burst into a clearing, panting and staring at the impressive line of footprints, leading through and out the other side. He smiled as he noticed he had gone through this clearing before, earlier in the morning. He was far closer to his great uncle's old tourist trap now.

He resumed running, following the prints until he finally reached an area where the trees started to thin. He could see where the great forest ended, just a few meters ahead. The animal must have had somewhere in particular in mind, if it were leaving the safety and comfort of the woods to venture into civilization. He began to increase his speed, rushing out of the trees and following the footprints now in a dead run.

He gasped for air as the footprints came to an abrupt halt, stopping right in front of the Mystery Shack. He gaped in surprise as he realized there wasn't an animal where the tracks ended. Instead, they broke off, as though the creature had simply decided to forgo the ground and tread through thin air.

"What?" Dipper vented aloud. He glared at the end, stomping at the dirt angrily. The tracks couldn't just end! Did the animal have wings? Did it just take off and fly over the Shack?

He grumbled loudly and walked through the front door, only to have his twin come running from the living room. She stopped short in front of him and gave the young detective a wide eyed expression.

Dipper sighed. "Look, Mabel, I don't want to talk about earlier-"

"That's not why I'm stopping you," his sister replied slowly. "Grunkle Stan wants to see you in the backyard. Now."

The young boy groaned. Had she gone to their great uncle in tears and told him about him getting mad at her? Even so, he walked through the hall and towards the back door.

Or, at least, where the back door should have been.

There was an enormous hole in the wall, providing a clear view of where Soos and Stan were gaping outside in the yard. The back porch was almost completely destroyed, and he could make out pieces of wood and shingles littered throughout the grass. Something had happened.

Dipper ran through the hole and hopped through the wreckage to where the two men were standing. He turned around before feeling his own jaw drop at the sight.

There were several claw marks covering the back of the Shack, as well as a huge chunk missing from the top floor, allowing him to see into Stan's room. That, and the destroyed porch, the upturned table, and the cooler from Wendy's secret hiding spot on the roof. The entirety of the back of their house had been mauled.

Grunkle Stan was the first to speak. "We need to find this monster."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: But Monty! I thought that NaNoWriMo was only for writing original novels! Not fanfiction!**

**Well, strange anonymous person, my teacher said it would still count if I did it. (Note: I have the coolest writing teacher EVER.)**

**Well, I'm honestly a bit embarrassed. I finished chapter one actually around seventeen days ago, and probably should have had it up sooner. My apologies. Chapter two should be out a little sooner. Peace out, and review!**


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as Grunkle Stan spoke, silence overtook the three once again. Dipper bent down and began to study the materials littering the ground in terrified awe.

"The animal must have been at least twenty feet tall, with a head or tail large enough to rip holes through solid buildings," he muttered to himself. "The claws are four-toed, ruling out the possibility of another pterodactyl or tyrannosaur. Each toe is ten inches long, with a space of 6 inches in between…"

Soos looked over the boy and examined the upturned items in the grass. "Welp, it doesn't like sodas," he observed, staring at the cans spilling out of the old cooler.

Stan was still in shock. He didn't speak, but instead looked over the wreckage of his home. He stared into his own room, with the darkness exposed and part of his carpet hanging out of the gaping hole. It was one of the biggest messes he had seen in his life, and that was considering what Lil' Gideon had done to the Shack in the past.

Dipper looked up from the rubble long enough to see Mabel rushing out what was left of the back door. "Bro, what the heck did this?" she asked, skidding to a halt at his side and picking up a piece of torn wood.

The young detective didn't answer immediately. To tell the truth, he didn't actually know. The clues all lead in different directions. The size of the claws didn't match up at all to the size the animal would have to be to tear the entire wall off their house, and the way that the table and cooler were overturned nearly shouted that the creature had done this hurriedly. The prints were clearly made by a four-legged animal, ruling out the possibility of wings, but then how did it clear the roof in the front to tear apart the back? Nothing added up.

"I have no idea," he finally replied, silently lifting up another piece of wood. His eyes widened in surprise as he saw a few droplets of blood splattered across one side of the lumber. "Um… Grunkle Stan?"

"Yeah, kid?" his great uncle replied, finally starting forward to inspect the damage.

"There's some blood here," the young detective reported. He held up the piece of wood for his friend and family to see. Mabel immediately winced, as though she couldn't bear the thought of their attacker in pain, but Soos and Stan seemed intrigued.

"Must've hurt itself when it was ripping apart the roof," Soos observed. He took the piece of wood from Dipper and traced a finger through the claw marks on it. "Yup."

Stan looked over Soos's shoulder to talk about possible ways to injure the animal purposely, while Mabel started to pull some of their belongings out of the rubble. Dipper found a few other pieces with blood smears on them, as well as some droplets in the grass around the remains of the porch. Whatever the creature was, it hadn't gotten away from damaging their home unscathed.

However, what confused Dipper most was why none of the claw marks along the entire backside of the Shack had any blood in them. It looked as though it had injured its claws or foreleg, but there would have been evidence in the scratches and scores if it had indeed done so. That left the options of it possibly hurting its head or tail. The young detective found it hard to imagine enough blood coming out of either of those places to create the multitude of drops in the grass without the animal needing immediate time to recover.

"It doesn't make sense," he whispered to himself. He realized that what he had written in the journal several hours ago, about the animal not wanting to hurt them, was probably completely incorrect now.

"Well," his great uncle finally broke into his thoughts. "We're going to catch this thing and make it pay for what it did to my house. You think it has any cash?"

Mabel laughed. "Hopefully!"

Grunkle Stan chuckled loudly before dropping the bloodstained wood he had been holding and began to throw out assignments. "If we're going to nab it, we need a plan. Mabel, I need you to design a large cage and possibly make it."

"Got it!" the girl answered cheerfully.

"Soos," Stan continued. "I need you to run out to the store and get several large pieces of red meat and a tranquilizer gun."

Soos saluted, a hilariously serious expression coming over his face. He then walked backwards through the rubble around to the front yard. Dipper heard a truck starting up before watching the man-child drive away towards town.

"Dipper," Grunkle Stan broke in. The young boy turned around to face the older man, dropping his findings to the ground. Stan sighed and gave him a semi-sympathetic look. "When you go out to look for Wendy tomorrow, can you set a trap?"

Dipper had an angry retort on the end of his tongue, but a stern look from Mabel stopped him from blurting it out loud. The younger boy sighed and nodded, glaring at the ground and clenching his fists in his pockets. Why was Stan acting as though it were a lost cause? It wasn't! He _would_ find her!

His great uncle nodded back and walked into the house, muttering about repairing the damage done to his room. Mabel hurried after him, leaving Dipper to his own devices.

As soon as he was alone, Dipper realized that he really didn't know how to set a trap for an animal he couldn't identify. He supposed a bear trap would work, but a huge net would be far less harmful. A snare could possibly kill it, and he wasn't sure if he could find one big enough. Grudgingly he remembered he had seen a bear trap somewhere in the back of the Shack that looked large enough to catch the Leaderaur.

He set off into the Shack to find the trap. He wouldn't take it out until tomorrow, but he needed to know where it was so he could leave early, as he always did. After some rummaging in the back of the gift shop, he finally located the oversized item.

"That would have been a lot faster with Wen-" Dipper stopped himself mid-murmur and clenched his teeth. No. He wouldn't let himself think that.

With that, he pulled the trap out of the corner it had been stuffed into out into the open. It was enormous. He could probably sit inside it comfortably if he felt so inclined.

Dipper didn't smile, but he couldn't help but feel some satisfaction. Whatever the animal was, it certainly wouldn't make it out of this trap. Maybe Grunkle Stan would actually be happy with him for the first time since he'd gotten here.

The boy left the trap on the floor in the middle of the gift shop. He would get in early in the morning before the tourists arrived, he decided as he hurriedly ate dinner and got into his pajamas. Nobody would mess with it.

Dipper finally crawled into bed around ten, perhaps an hour after Mabel. He pulled out a flashlight and started to read. He heard his sister shift in the bed across the room, and turned to see her dark brown eyes staring at him.

"Hey, Dipper?" she whispered. He cocked his head to one side and put down his book.

"I'm… I'm really sorry I yelled at you this morning," she continued after a moment, staring at the floor.

Dipper struggled to answer. "Um… I'm sorry too," he replied, lowering his head. "I… I shouldn't have stormed out like that."

The two were silent for a moment. The slightly younger twin could hear his sister sighing from her bed before slipping completely under the covers. He finally murmured one last thing.

"I know that you want me to stop looking, Mabel… But I know that Wendy's out there, and I'm not going to stop looking for her…"

"I know," Mabel breathed quietly from her covers.

A heavy quiet overcame the room. Neither twin spoke again, but sat in the silence awkwardly until Dipper finally heard Mabel's soft snores. He rose his head to look out the window and looked once again over the wreckage of the Shack, strewn across the backyard. _Whatever that animal is, I'm going to find it_.

The night was long and uncomfortable. Grunkle Stan had temporarily patched up the hole in his room with a small tarp, but the giant place where the beast had torn away the door and part of the wall downstairs was left unguarded. Dipper was afraid of any other beings of the supernatural realm getting in, not to mention the creature that had caused the damage in the first place. If it had managed to rip apart the back of the house unscathed, then there was no telling what it could do to a sleeping twin. With this in mind, the young boy reluctantly fell into unconsciousness.

Dipper's internal alarm went off just when the sun should have risen. The day was inclement, and no light filtered through the dark clouds. He dragged himself from his bed and pulled on his clothes, slipping downstairs to retrieve his recovered trap. It was in the same place he left it, thankfully, though he realized that it was going to be exhausting to carry it all the way out into the woods. That, and the steaks Soos had gotten yesterday. Oh well. Too late.

The young detective set off into the forest with trap and meat in hand. He was heading to an area he had scoped out the year before, back when he had less notes on Wendy's whereabouts. The area was a huge clearing with tough, muddy earth making up the ground, surrounded thickly by pine trees. It would be the perfect place to set up a trap, and since it was in a lower altitude of the woods, the scent of the meat would be detectable for miles around.

However, to get to the clearing, Dipper knew he would have to cross behind a rather slippery waterfall. Normally it wouldn't be a problem, but he had several extra pounds of metal and meat, making it easier to slip. He would have to be extremely careful. Honestly, he was having second thoughts about the location altogether. Was it worth the risk to cross?

As the young boy trekked through the woods, he happened to pass the path he had been taking yesterday to follow the strange animal home. The footprints, though filled with rain, were still entirely visible. He put down his supplies for a moment to examine them again.

"The claws are exactly the same length apart…" he murmured to himself, touching the few inches between the toes. No doubt about it, the animal that had mauled the back of the house yesterday had been the same one that shocked him on his way home. He remembered the way the eyes gleamed coldly, and how huge the shadow in the forest had been. _When I finally do catch it, we're going to have trouble putting it into a cage_.

He stood up and left to tracks, regathering his stuff and continuing his long, wet hike. It wasn't fully pouring rain, but the cold drizzle was enough to make him shiver. He glared up at the clouds and scuffed his foot in the soaking earth.

Soon, he reached the waterfall. The river that cascaded from the heights of the cliff was flowing quite fast, and Dipper could make out stray sticks and branches in the freezing liquid. The storm was already doing damage.

As the young detective started to make his way to the hidden trail behind the waterfall, he saw something that immediately discouraged him. A thin layer of algae had grown on the rocks since he had last walked there, only adding to the surprising slipperiness. He wondered if he should give up, but imagining the creature do more damage to the Shack, or further distracting him from finding Wendy, he immediately shooed away his doubts. That spot was probably the best option for trapping something big, and he needed the best of the best.

Slowly, the young boy took his first step. He winced as his sneaker slid a bit on the rock, and reluctantly put weight on it. To his surprise and relief, it held. He took another step, feeling even more confident when his shoe clung to the rock beneath the slippery algae.

He was halfway across when he suddenly felt off balance. He swung his body around in an attempt to regain center, but only became even more clumsy when the bear trap started slipping from his grasp. The mist from the waterfall was making the chain slick, and he knew he was done for the moment the trap went over the side of the rock.

Dipper's scream echoed through the woods as he was dragged over the edge. The bag of meat that Soos had purchased yesterday went flying out of his grasp, and he felt himself letting go of the bear trap as he fell. His vest and hat were quickly torn from his body and lost in the sea of frothing white water below. Various rocks hit him before he was dragged down by the gushing river, tumbling and coughing and gasping until he finally hit the bottom.

The actual impact against the floor of the river didn't hurt as much as the moment after it. Dipper's body hit the pebbles along the bottom side-first, but his right leg slammed against a large rock near the side. He cried out beneath the surface as blinding pain swept up from his shins, electrifying his body and making everything else feel dull and disconnected. He could feel pounding in his ears, and the sudden, intense throbbing from his leg was almost too much to bear. He was just inches from falling unconscious, but he knew he needed to get out of the water before he drowned.

With all his strength, the young boy clawed frantically with his arms until one struck what felt like a stick. He seized it and pulled, yanking his head above the flowing river. Gasping for air, he dragged himself to the side and let himself become limp on the long strip of stones that made up the bank. Everything was blurred. He couldn't see anything but the gray sky above him.

He tried his best to fall asleep now that he was out of immediate danger. The throbs from his leg were consuming his battered body, making every beat of his heart clench his muscles and squeeze tears from his eyes. All he wanted was to leave the agonizing reality, but he couldn't. Something was keeping him awake.

Many painful minutes passed before Dipper finally felt himself slipping away from consciousness. He felt like cheering, but nothing in his body was about to let him do so. Instead, he simply closed his eyes and let himself slide away from the gray fuzz that he had been trapped in moments ago.

However, not all awakenings are as pleasant or welcoming as the gentle lullings into sleep. Dipper, for one, awoke in slow, dull pain. It wasn't as bad as the searing agony he had been in upon the initial injury of his leg, but it was highly uncomfortable nethertheless. As soon as he concluded that he would not be falling asleep again, the thought that he would have to move and hopefully get back to the Shack came to mind.

The young boy struggled to sit up. He winced upon seeing the bloody mess of his right shin, and slowly reached down to touch it. A sudden throb was emitted as his fingers met the wounded flesh, and he gasped and gritted his teeth. He hadn't broken a bone, but something was definitely not working right.

The moon glittered through the clouds, and Dipper lifted his hands to the light to examine the scratches. There were a few that had most likely been bleeding badly, but they were all scabbed up and crusted now. Nothing was as bad as the leg, thankfully, so the young boy found himself slowly pulling his body onto all fours. Maybe he could crawl back?

The idea was definitely going to be painful, but Dipper had to admit it would work if he just took care. As he slowly made his way up the bank, he let his leg drag behind him and used the rest of his limbs do the walking. However, as he crawled into the woods, he realized that there was no way he could get the mile back to the Mystery Shack with the amount of energy and pain he had at the moment.

_That's ok. That's ok. All you need it rest_, the young boy thought to himself. Despite this, he couldn't shake the nagging thought that he _had_ just rested for around nine hours, and he still wasn't in any condition to make his way home. Worry began to creep through him as he tried to move again, only to feel every limb complain with a dull throb.

Suddenly, he froze. He could hear something moving in the trees on the other side of the river. The moon suddenly went behind a cloud, cutting off the light. He squinted to try and see what the noise was, and nearly choked in surprise when he finally spotted it.

There was an enormous dark shape on the other bank, crouching over a bundle lying in the mud. It was snuffling and pawing at it, letting out occasional snorts as its muzzle sank into the material. Oddly enough, whenever this happened, the material made a strange crackling noise. Dipper noticed that the bundle seemed to be the package of steaks he had been carrying as bait earlier, and finally realized that the thing was probably just a hungry scavenger. If he stayed still enough, it wouldn't notice him, and would move on with whatever life it had on its own.

The boy flinched at the loud tearing noise from the plastic as the creature ripped it open. Loud chomping and slurping sounds could be heard as it consumed the raw meat, and it raised its head with every swallow like a bird. Very slowly, Dipper started to realize that whatever this thing was, it probably wasn't just a bear or wildcat. The animal had an extremely long neck, and its head was maybe the same size as a young deer.

A beam of light suddenly struck down from the clouds, illuminating the gigantic animal for only a second before it ducked down again. However, a second was all Dipper needed to see a flash of bright red scales and needlelike teeth. He gasped out loud, quickly covering his mouth in panic.

The creature abruptly rose its head, disturbed by the tiny sound. It slowly swung around to face Dipper, its eyes gleaming and a low growl starting to rumble in its throat. Dipper tried to hold perfectly still, despite every part of his body violently shaking in fear, not to mention the increasing pain from his leg. However, his efforts failed, and his heart began to race as the animal caught sight of him.

It narrowed its eyes, peering through the dark to fully examine the strange being huddling on the opposite bank. The steak it had been clenching between its jaws fell to the ground as the creature opened its mouth, inhaling loudly. Dipper guessed that the animal had a jacobson's organ of sorts, and was attempting to detect his species through the sixth sense. He hoped the river water would cover up his rather sweaty smell, letting the animal know he was no threat and hopefully not worthy of its interest.

The creature took a step forward, and Dipper's jaw dropped. The paw of the animal was tiny in comparison to the rest of its body, only around ten inches across. While he marveled at how the creature managed to retain balance, he couldn't help but notice that the claws were a perfect three centimeters from each end of a toe. With a tiny withheld choking noise, the young detective realized that this animal must be the one and same that had been bothering his great uncle for six months!

His terrified stream of thoughts were interrupted as a loud, birdlike noise was emitted from the creature. It had just taken a step into the river, and was most likely uncomfortable in the cold. Weakly, he hoped that it would just give up, discouraged by the water, and finish off the meat before leaving. Of course, he knew that was probably not going to happen.

It continued to wade through the flow, its eyes now set determinedly on him. Dipper scrambled across the pebbles, ignoring the powerful pricks of pain from his leg as he tried to get away from his advancing visitor. Eventually, his back met a boulder, and he slumped onto the sparse riverside shrubbery in defeat. He heard the loud splashing as the animal left the water, and the crunches as it began to walk up the bank towards him.

The young boy gathered up all his courage and stared up to the meet the eyes of the creature, just a few meters away from him. The faint moonlight still emitted from the clouds outlined the massive shape of the animal, unhelpfully providing Dipper with the knowledge that the neck of the animal was around seven feet long. He didn't want to guess the actual length of the creature's body, but it looked as though it were at very least the span of a full sized school bus. He shuddered with dread.

Suddenly, the animal stumbled back away from him, letting out a surprised snort. The young detective quickly looked around him to see if anything had spooked it, but the woods were as quiet and empty as ever. He returned his attention to the creature, which was now crouching down in an almost subdued position. Dipper quietly noted that the animal didn't look scared, but rather astonished.

They stayed there, staring at each other, for several moments before the animal finally took a slow step forward. Its tail dragged in the stones littering the bank of the river, and the eyes were wide and… _hopeful_? Though he found it hard to believe, it was impossible to misread the expression on the animal's face.

The young detective flinched in surprise as the enormous creature sat down, the pebbles crunching under it as it did so. He could now make out the full shape of it, and was flabbergasted by what he saw.

The animal appeared to be a rather small dragon.

He didn't want to believe it, but it was impossible to deny. The creature had a pair of huge wings neatly folded across its back, and the claws gleamed like polished knives. The skin of the animal was entirely orangy-red reptilian scales. It had four horns arranged on the top of its head, the two in the middle much shorter and straighter than the two on the outside. Even above the rushing of the river, Dipper could detect the heavy, resonating breaths that the animal took, its almost cautious demeanor taking hold of its entire body.

Despite the boy's initial terror, the young detective soon came to the conclusion that the animal had for some reason lost all interest in harming him. Instead, it seemed largely curious, sniffing around him and mostly seeming interested in his upper half. Suddenly, it retreated and dashed back to the river, leaving him in shock.

Moments later, the animal came back, a piece of fabric clutched tightly between its teeth. Dipper found himself trying to back away once more, but was stopped by the large paw of the dragon taking hold of his leg. He stared upward into its bright green eyes, and almost had a heart attack as it abruptly dropped the recovered article into his lap.

He lifted it up and examined it in the faded light. The young detective couldn't believe it. It was his vest!

_How did it know this belonged to me? Why did it even bring it to me in the first place? Come to think of it, why isn't it eating me if it was hungry enough to eat a bag of dirty, slightly expired steaks?_ The questions flew through the boy's mind as he wordlessly pulled on his recovered vest. The dragon watched his every move with cat-like eyes, releasing his leg and rising into a standing position.

"S-s-so," Dipper stuttered, his gaze meeting the animal's shakily. "H-how'd you know this belonged to me?"

A low rumbling reverberated from the creature's throat, making Dipper suddenly wish he hadn't asked the question. The dragon's bones creaked as it leaned down, its head getting very, very close to his neck. The young detective tried to flinch away before he felt giant jaws closing onto the scruff of his vest, lifting him into the air.

Without another sound, the dragon set off with the tiny boy in its jaws into the night.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: And there's chapter two! Man, I really forgot how dark this was... I wrote this in trimester one.**

**Also, if I made any large mistakes this chapter, please notify me. It's incredibly hard to edit with certain people listening to the MLP theme song in the background on full volume.**

**Anyways, I have no idea when chapter three is going to be posted, but it's going to be posted before the end of November, and that's a promise! Don't worry. Until then, peace out, and please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

To say that Dipper Pines did not expect to be picked up by the gigantic creature would be an understatement. He was a perfect mixture of surprised and terrified, but his emotions quickly started to lean further towards the latter as the dragon began to move. He was completely unfamiliar with the way it felt to dangle from the teeth of a twenty foot tall quadruped while it ran.

As the huge animal picked up speed, the young detective shut his eyes as though the loss of sight could take away the entire experience. But the wind still blew loudly in his ears, and he could feel every small bob of the creature's neck. As a matter of fact, the loss of sight made the experience positively horrifying. He opened his eyes again.

Soon, Dipper started to notice they were passing familiar places in the woods. There was that stump he had sat on after twisting his ankle last summer. Twenty meters from that was the tree he had spotted a unicorn scratching itself on. Another thirty meters and he could make out a hole he had tripped over because he'd been busy looking over his map of possible Wendy locations. He realized that they were growing closer to the Mystery Shack.

_No_, he told himself. _Sure, the vest could have just been the dragon assuming it belonged to me because I'm a human. But it has no idea where I live, right?_

Wrong.

They reached a small area where the trees thinned, thickened again, thinned and then eventually disappeared altogether. It was within eyesight of the Mystery Shack. This is where the colossal creature stopped, peering through the woods and lashing its tail. Dipper shivered, because it was clear it was looking directly at his great uncle's permanent house.

The animal stayed there, simply staring, for quite some time. It seemed to be thinking over something, perhaps planning. Dipper was growing restless. He was fifteen feet above the ground, and he could be accidently or purposely dropped at any moment. Every muscle in him burned to run, fight, punch, anything to get out of the terrifying situation currently at hand.

Suddenly, he swayed back and bumped gently against the dragon's neck as it started to move again. It was much slower this time, though, and almost seemed to be tiptoeing. The young detective reached up and shielded his eyes from the abrupt exposure to moonlight as the creature stepped into his backyard.

It looked about almost timidly, drawing itself back until it looked as though it were only half its full size. He felt the wind rushing by him softly as it lowered him to the ground. The great jaws unclenched from around the back of his vest, and the dragon turned around as though it were about to tear back into the woods. Dipper looked at the retreating form, completely confused. The animal seemed greatly reluctant to leave.

It turned back around and drew closer to Dipper once again. He winced in pain as it lowered its head and smacked its muzzle against his back. Despite the slight discomfort, he didn't make any noise. The dragon gave him what could only be described as a fearful look and bashed itself against him again.

Dipper gave it a questioning look. What the heck was it doing?

The dragon seemed to be growing slightly frantic. It nipped him, pushed him roughly, whipped its tail against his back, but still he didn't complain. Finally, the huge animal abandoned whatever it had been trying to do and rose its head to full height, letting out a shattering roar.

Dipper winced and slammed his hands over his ears. Even with his most affected sense muffled, he could still feel the tremendous vibration through the ground. The call lasted only a few seconds, before the dragon closed its mouth and dashed back into the woods at full speed.

As he heard the footfalls of the creature growing quieter, Dipper heard the loud sounds of someone running down stairs before Grunkle Stan appeared outlined in the hole of the Mystery Shack wall. "I can take you going through my garbage, I can take you scaring my niece and nephew, but this is the final straw! I can't believe you have the nerve-"

His eyes, furiously scanning the yard, spotted Dipper. The conman fell silent before a small, relieved smile spread across his wrinkled features. "Kid! You're back!"

Dipper blinked and nodded, holding his head. His great uncle walked over and pulled him onto his feet, letting him stand on one leg while the other was supported. The two hobbled together into the Shack.

"Where were you? I sent Mabel and Soos out to search the woods, and they're still out there." Stan scratched his head. "Might want to call them back now…"

"It's a long story," Dipper gasped, collapsing onto the large armchair in the living room. His great uncle pushed him over and sat beside him.

"Well, we have all night," Stan replied. He pulled out a phone and dialed a number. The first thing he said was, "He's here."

Dipper heard the person on the other end excitedly exclaim something, followed by low muttering. Stan shook his head and answered, "No, he just showed up in the yard. I was about to make him tell me how, but I guess he can wait for you."

The person said something rather loudly, and the second smile of the night appeared on his great uncle's face. "Yeah, I'll see you soon," he replied, pushing the end button. Stuffing the phone back into his pocket, Stan stood up and started out of the room. "Kid, I'm going to go get you some bandages. Your sister is probably going to burst through the door in about a minute, so prepare yourself." He then left.

Dipper sat in silence. His leg throbbed suddenly, making him hiss in pain. He slowly lowered himself to the floor, where he could stretch out his injured shin and examine the damage. As soon as he caught sight of the torn, bloody mess, though, he felt his stomach grow unsettled and decided it could wait.

"Dipper!" someone shouted from the hole that had once been a door. The young detective looked up, spotting the overjoyed face of his sister rapidly approaching before capturing his body in a hug. Soos appeared behind her, grinning and flopping onto the floor.

"Hi, Mabel," he smiled weakly. He reached out a hand and gently high-fived Soos, who fistpumped happily. He could hear his sister panting, as though she had been running the entire way there. As a matter of fact, she probably had.

"Glad to see you all reuniting," Stan joked, once again entering the room. His hands were full of bandages and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. "Now you can tell us why you showed up in our yard around," he checked his watch, "Nine o' clock."

Mabel released him, only then noticing the injured state of his leg. She covered her mouth and winced at the very sight, pushing Soos a bit further away from the wounded boy.

"Well, I went out with the trap like Grunkle Stan asked this morning," Dipper began as said grunkle pulled out a cotton swab and opened the peroxide. "I knew about this awesome place a mile from here where I could set it up, but I had to cross a waterfall to get to it." He hissed loudly as Stan liberally applied the chemical. "Ouch, that stings."

"Continue," his great uncle requested, ignoring the boy's pain.

The young detective gave him a slight glare before starting the story again. "I started to cross, but I ended up slipping and hurting my leg on the way down. I passed out on the bank, and when I woke up, it was dark out. I started to drag myself home, but…" He found himself trailing off, suddenly uncertain of how to continue the tale. The part that came after was almost too astonishing for words.

"But what?" Mabel asked, leaning against one hand and sprawling on the carpet. She looked up at him eagerly. Soos lifted his head in anticipation as well.

"But I heard something on the other bank," the boy resumed after an uneasy moment.

"And it was…" Grunkle Stan asked, trailing off. "Jeez, kid, just spit it out already."

Dipper gave his friend and family a quick glance before focusing on his wounded shin. "It was a dragon," he finally answered.

Grunkle Stan's head shot up in shock, spilling more peroxide and making his great nephew grit his teeth. "A dragon?" he questioned. "Are you sure? I mean, sure, they exist, but they're extremely rare. I don't think anyone in this town has seen one since at least fourteen years ago."

"It was definitely a dragon," the young detective insisted. "It had wings, four legs, scales and horns. It ate all the steaks," he added, looking at Soos. The man-child sighed sadly.

"Did it try to hurt you?" Mabel asked after a moment. "I mean, dragons are super mean, right?"

"That's the weird thing. It didn't," Dipper murmured. "It almost seemed worried about me. That's how I got home. It carried me."

Everyone was silent for a moment. Finally, Grunkle Stan decided to continue the unusual conversation. "Well, I doubt you could have roared like that, so I'm not going to argue about it carrying you," he started slowly, referencing the earlier alarm he had received. "But everyone I know who's ever had experience with a dragon has told me that they hate humans. They're nothing more than angry wolves stuck as giant lizards."

"Then why did it care enough to carry me home? How did it even know where I lived?" the young detective pondered. "And if it did care, then why did it nearly destroy the Shack?"

"Wait, this was the thing that ripped part of the roof off?" Soos asked. Stan's eyes widened and Mabel gasped.

"I'm pretty sure. The claws were the exact same length apart," the boy explained. He rubbed a small bruise forming on his arm and looked out the door, into the darkening woods.

"Welp, we're clearly not going to catch this with a normal trap," Grunkle Stan concluded. "We need something bigger. Soos, do you think that you could find a dead deer and fill it with rat poison?"

"Wait, we can't just kill it!" Dipper exclaimed. "It saved me!"

"Dipper, it tore apart our house and scared Grunkle Stan," Mabel tried to reason. "Besides, aren't you just the tiniest bit scared that it knows where we live?" She gave a slightly disapproving look to her great uncle and continued. "I don't want to kill it, but we need to find a way to get it away from us before it does something worse."

The young detective fell silent. The only noise he made was another slight squeak as his great uncle began wrapping bandages around his calf.

"We could just trap it and set it free like, a hundred miles from here," Soos suggested.

"It's got wings. One hundred miles is nothing for an animal with wings," Stan replied, shooting down the idea. Mabel sighed and scooted beside her downtrodden brother as he gazed blankly at the floor. The slight movement made her great uncle suddenly seem to notice that the two children were still there. He taped Dipper's bandage in place before standing up.

"You kids should be going up to bed now," he remarked. "Dipper, you especially. I don't know what kind of dragon worries about people, but we should be cautious about it anyways. If you have any ideas for trapping it, tell us, but you need sleep to heal that injury."

Dipper sighed and got to his feet, using Mabel as a crutch to get upstairs. He put on his pajamas almost lifelessly and flopped onto his bed. His sister sat next to him, staring at his bandaged shin almost sadly.

"Mabel, that dragon doesn't want to hurt us," he said suddenly, startling her. She quickly recovered from her shock, but her brother didn't speak again.

"Look, I know it saved you, and I'm not going to argue that something isn't different about it because there clearly is," she began. "But it knew where you lived, and it almost destroyed our home. It might care about you, but we have no idea about whether or not it cares about the rest of us at all."

Dipper muttered something under his breath. Mabel leaned closer to him. "Sorry, didn't quite catch that, broseph."

"It returned my vest," the young detective murmured, touching the damp fabric. "I lost it when I fell down the waterfall, and it brought it back to me, like it was worried about me staying warm."

Mabel's eyes widened slightly. "Really?"

Dipper nodded, clenching his vest tightly. "Mabel, it's really hard to say, but I feel like I've seen that dragon before." When his sister gave him a slight look of confusion, he elaborated. "The way it looked at me was so familiar. It almost scared me."

"Maybe we saw it sometime last summer," she mused. "We ran into a lot of crazy monsters. I'm sure we could have seen the eyes in a cave or something."

Her brother did not reply this time. She looked down at him in confusion, before jumping a bit when she saw there were tears in his eyes. "Dip, what's the matter?" she asked, placing a small hand on his shoulder.

"I just remembered why I know that look," he whispered, covering his eyes and sniffling.

Mabel was almost afraid to ask, but didn't have to. Her brother took a shaky breath before whimpering, "It was the look Wendy gave me whenever she left work."

The young artist stared at the floor. As incredibly sorry she felt for her brother, she couldn't help but admit to herself that this Wendy business was getting almost tiring. She'd thought he would give up when the girl's father himself stopped looking, but no. He just had to keep making more maps, spending more time in the woods completely alone, and locking himself away to study where everyone who ever knew her saw her last. It had finally gone so far that he was comparing her to a dragon. His obsession wasn't going away, it was only increasing the sadder and more desperate he got.

She slowly got off his bed and retreated to her own cot, pulling off her sweater and falling asleep within minutes. However, her brother stayed awake hours after that, silently sobbing into his pillow.

The next morning was almost completely clear. The sun rose in the morning, as though the great storm had never happened, and Mabel got to watch the stars fade away as she ate breakfast. Dipper, on the other hand, was lying half asleep upstairs in his bed, completely miserable.

Grunkle Stan had visited the two in the attic around seven in the morning, unofficially diagnosing the young detective with a pulled muscle and sending his sister off to eat. When Dipper had started to prepare for a fresh search for Wendy, his great uncle had pushed him back into bed with the command he would not go on any more dangerous solo missions until his leg was better. To only add to his frustration, he was pretty sure the old man had told Mabel to make sure he stayed inside and didn't try to sneak out.

He finally stumbled downstairs to eat breakfast around eight thirty, half-heartedly consuming an apple before retreating to the living room to read the newspaper. There really weren't any interesting stories, just like the last 26 issues he had read. Discouraged from taking on the day in the lower levels of the Shack, he walked back upstairs, regretting ever straying from his room.

The several news articles about Wendy's strange disappearance were still pinned up on Dipper's wall. As he flopped back into his bed and began reaching for a book, one suddenly stood out. He sat back up slowly and pulled away the thumbtack that held it in place, beginning to read.

_Lumberjack's Daughter Still Not Found - New Evidence?_

_In a tragic event that shook nearly the entire town of Gravity Falls_-

Dipper skipped over the part about the nature of the disappearance. He didn't want to read that again. He settled a few paragraphs down, an elated expression spreading across his face as he found what he was looking for.

"_She came home like she always does on Friday," says Wendy's brother. "She didn't look sad about anything, really. Then she said she was going to go for a walk around the old creek about a half mile from here, and she didn't come back."_

_Local authorities have searched the area and not found any evidence of the teen, though one reported unusual marks in the mud around the creek area. Wendy's other brothers and father were not available for comment._

Unusual marks. The first time he had read the article, he had just assumed the cops were fishing for anything and everything to report, but now that he knew more, he realized the true weight of the fact. Maybe she hadn't run away! Maybe she had gotten into a scuffle with some sort of animal, or even another human, and was dragged away! Maybe… Maybe…

_Maybe she's still alive._

Dipper fistpumped and cracked a smile for the first time in days. He had a new lead.

Mabel came upstairs around lunch, carrying a peanut butter sandwich in one hand and Waddles in the other. As she neared the entrance to the attic, she could hear a frantic scribbling noise even through the door. She put her pig down, turned the doorknob, and prepared for the worst.

Her brother was sitting on his bed, rapidly examining maps and taking notes on a pad of paper. The young artist's mouth opened in shock as she saw the small smile on his face, taking hold of his every feature and brightening it. She hadn't seen him so happy in months.

"Bro, what'd you find?" she asked, dropping the sandwich on their bedside table and sitting on her own bed. She would have plopped down on his, but there were many papers and articles blocking her way that she didn't want to mess up. He looked up at her only for a moment before resuming his frenzied writing.

"I think I found out where Wendy went missing," he answered excitedly, drawing a circle on his current map and showing her. The area on the paper he had marked out seemed to be a tiny body of water surrounded endlessly by pine trees.

"Dip, that's great!" Mabel encouraged, though she privately added, _and not just for Wendy_. She reached up and patted her brother on the back before picking the sandwich back up. "Hey, do you want to take a break and eat lunch?"

The young detective looked up regretfully. "Uh, I kind of have to finish this first," he started slowly. As his sister's face fell, he immediately added, "But I'll be with you in just a few minutes! Don't worry!"

Mabel gave him her trademark grin and nodded, leaving the sandwich on his sheets. "Gotcha. See you downstairs, broseph!"

She skipped out of the room and shut the door behind her. He could hear her jumping down the stairs in only a way Mabel would do. He saluted to the shut door and refocused himself on his work.

After his promised few minutes, he pulled himself away from the research at last. Sandwich in hand, he folded up the countless papers, pinning a few up while leaving the rest for when he would return after his meal. With his work somewhat organized, he left the room in high spirits as he went to meet his sister in the kitchen.

As he reached the foot of the stairs, Dipper couldn't help but attempt to skip as his sister had done. Things were finally looking up. Sure, he couldn't go out on his rebounded search for Wendy just yet, but he would be able to in just a matter of a few days, when his stupid leg finally healed. He would be able to find her for real this time. He had new evidence!

He was barely able to register his sister's cheerful greeting as he realized that he was finally feeling hopeful once again.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: GOOD LARD THIS FANFICTION HAS SEVENTY TWO PAGES**

**I GOTTA POST MORE**

**Anyways, not much happens in this chapter, but I can guarantee that plenty happens in the next. So, there's not really much to say here except please review, and peace out!**


	4. Chapter 4

The days that followed Dipper's breakthrough were suspenseful and patience-testing. Grunkle Stan had been telling the truth when he said he wouldn't let Dipper out of the house until his leg was better, and due to this, the boy grew more and more restless as the days passed. His pile of notes became several piles, which became towers, which became mountains. The map he had made of Wendy's location was soon so scribbled on that hardly any of the original image was visible.

Finally, the day came that his great uncle gave him the doctor's seal of approval, though the actual confirmation was far less official. ("Can I go out TODAY?" "It's been a week, sure.") He started stuffing things into his backpack as soon as the announcement was made to the point the poor bag wouldn't zip closed. He would not be caught unprepared this time.

Of course, Stan made him bring his cell phone in case he was caught in another freak waterfall accident, but he stuffed it into his pocket and ignored it for the rest of the expedition. However, he did make sure to include a packed lunch, a swiss army knife, an incredibly stocked first-aid kit and a length of rope in his inventory. One could never have too many life-saving items on hand, especially if that dragon showed up in a hostile mood.

He set off after eating a large breakfast with his sister and double-checking everything he was taking along. Stan seemed a bit worried about letting him go on his own, but never admitted it. Finally, Dipper was in the peace and natural quiet of the woods.

He started off towards the old creek immediately, not taking any time to investigate mysterious footprints or interesting trees. Of course, the area had been one of the ones he had searched half-heartedly last year, so there was already a faint trail he could follow. Despite the positive nature of the trip and Dipper's rising fascination, he knew that one part of the trip was not going to be as lighthearted.

This part of the trip occurred perhaps an hour after lunch. He knew he had reached it when he saw the small cabin through the trees, almost blending in perfectly with the surrounding environment. It was Wendy's old home.

He sighed and immediately lightened his steps. Manly Dan had become easily angered after her disappearance, so he didn't want to be caught on his property alone. Even so, he couldn't help but stare at the beautiful little house in the middle of the forest. It had been the residence of his best friend, and seeing it brought back enough memories to make him cry.

He crept past the house in around ten minutes, pausing for a few moments before it would finally recede from his sight. He could hear the birds calling in upbeat song, as though nothing were wrong. He shook his head, hoping to shake away the small amounts of anger and misery that came with seeing the remains of what his friend's life had been.

The afternoon sunlight glittered down through the leafy canopy as he finally reached the stream. He wasn't near where the police had found the strange markings, but he was fairly close even so. Only about a quarter of a mile of walking and he would be there. He finally began to grow excited again. He quickened his pace, listening to the clinking of the various materials in his pack, and started to make his way up the creek.

He noticed that the closer he got to the area, the muddier and less pebbly the terrain became. He was practically wading through the mucky mess when he finally saw the large stone that marked the place they had found the markings. Dropping his pack onto the rock, he started to investigate the spot thoroughly.

To be honest, he really hadn't been sure what he was going to do when he reached the area. Dipper thought that maybe there would be a cave where she was secretly spending the nights, or the tracks of an animal that could have taken her, but there wasn't any signs of human or creature activity alike. The area was completely deserted, the only sounds being his sneakers squelching in the mud and the chirping of the birds.

He winced slightly as he sank past his shins into the marshy earth, reaching a particularly deep spot. He yanked his feet from the muck with much effort, his breath considerably faster when he had freed himself. As he made his way to slightly drier ground, he noticed something quite odd in one of the deep prints he had made.

There was a strangely colored piece of material, just barely showing through the grime. He squinted before realizing it was some sort of fabric, waterlogged and completely smothered. He pulled off his shoes and socks, not wanting to get them any dirtier, and waded back into the marsh with conclusions and theories popping up throughout his mind. However, they all disappeared, leaving only curiosity, when he stuck a hand in to grab it.

He felt around before finally grasping the fabric, pulling hard. The piece refused to budge, much to his discontent. He reached his other hand in and found another corner of it. Using both arms, he managed to fish the disgusting remains of… something, out of the mud.

He grimaced slightly at the sight. He could now see that the fabric had been some sort of fur, possibly once belonging to an animal. Despite this, there wasn't any bones or flesh anywhere on the item. Confused, he squelched his way back over to the creek and began to clean the filthy fur in the water.

He soon realized that whatever his find was, it wasn't in fact the long-dead corpse of some poor creature. Instead, it looked to be man made, with cotton lining the inside rather than muscle. As he rinsed a few thick clumps from the sides, the answer hit him like a ton of bricks.

It was a hat.

He stopped his cleaning immediately, frozen. The hat, as saturated and mud-covered it was, was easily recognizable. This hat had belonged to Wendy.

He was terrified, petrified, unable to react. To actually touch something that had belonged to her, to see it and feel it, was overwhelming. He was stunned. He was unable to process it.

And then all of a sudden, his brain went into overdrive, conjuring up thousands of possibilities as to why her hat had been buried in eight inches in grime near her last known place. Murder, kidnapping, heat, thievery, teleportation and what felt like millions of other ideas swam through his mind. As the powerful surge of visions continued, one small theory immediately made itself clear. _If she lost her hat, maybe she lost some of her other clothing too_!

He immediately sprinted to where his backpack was sitting, ignoring the pains in his feet and shins that came with running through mud, and dropped the hat on top before retreating to where he had recovered it in the first place. Frantically digging, he nearly cried out in shock when he felt another article brush through his fingers.

Pulling the material out, he saw it was the nearly-colorless remains of her flannel. Some of the buttons were missing, and one sleeve looked as though it had been mauled by time completely, but it was yet another reminder that he was on her trail. He raced back to the stream and cleaned it off as much as he could before tossing it with her hat and returning to the digging site.

After around ten minutes, he had recovered the hat, the flannel, both her socks and one of her boots. He was both ecstatic and horrified. The new evidence of her existence should have been comforting, but the damage done to the articles of clothing scared him out of his mind. Images of his best friend being mauled and torn to death flooded his mind, bringing tears to his eyes.

He forced the visions away, suddenly noticing something unnervingly familiar. The birds and insects had stopped calling. The silence was back, but this time, he knew the cause.

Dipper looked up from the rock, very slowly scanning the area around him. "I know you're here, so stop hiding!" he called shakily. The dragon was here. Nothing else could cease the chorus of the animals around him.

Even though he was expecting it, the young detective jumped a bit in shock when he finally spotting the glittering pair of green eyes. The animal, realizing that its presence was no longer secret, started to come out of the underbrush. Dipper stayed frozen on his stone, watching the huge creature pull itself from the dense shrubbery. He had been incredibly exhausted when he had seen it first, not to mention it had been night, so this was the first time he really got the see the dragon clearly.

To say the least, it was impressive. The animal's rusty appearance that had seemed drab in the moonlight was now appeared to be almost a brilliant red in the sun. It approached him, splashing through the stream much the way it had through the river. As timid as the boy was, he couldn't help but feel a bit of amusement when the dragon stumbled in the deep mud.

"Well, we meet again," he joked weakly. The animal gave him an inquiring look before sinking onto its haunches. With the head so close, he admired the intricate pattern of scales on the muzzle and around the eyes. He noticed now in the light that the horns were the same color as the rest of the body, but were obviously made of bone. Perhaps the pigment from the skin had somehow soaked into the horn?

He didn't have time to continue the thought as the head of the reptile got very, very close to him. Instead of biting him like he had half-expected it to, it took hold of Wendy's hat. He scrambled to pull it away, but the animal's head was already too far for him to reach. He was about to create an elaborate plan to retrieve his find when he realized just exactly what the animal was doing.

The creature had let the hat fall to the ground at its feet, and was now nosing it almost… sadly? He couldn't quite read the expression in its eyes. It looked almost as though it were grieving the way elephants did upon finding a body of one of their own.

_Maybe it was a witness of whatever happened to Wendy a year ago_? he thought in shock. Slowly, he realized he was holding the dragon on a whole new level of respect. It may not have even known who Wendy was, but the way it was treating her favorite article of clothing made him feel entirely different.

Suddenly, the dragon's head snapped back up. It gave him what could be considered an apologetic look and picked up the hat in its teeth again, placing it tenderly in his lap. He marveled at the way it looked at the clothing as he placed it back next to his pack with the others. Was it reluctant? Why would it be reluctant?

His thoughts were gently broken as the creature let out a low rumbling noise, slumping the rest of its body onto the ground. It was definitely regretting something. The body language it was using reminded him of whenever Mabel got upset.

"Hey, buddy, what's wrong?" he asked gently. The young detective slipped off the rock, walking cautiously over to the great animal. It raised its head slightly, sniffing at him. He slowly reached out a hand, placing it over the dragon's paw.

The creature rumbled again, but this time, it sounded considerably happier. He gasped quietly as it nuzzled at his vest. The actions were so humanlike it was scaring him.

"You can have the hat if you want," he murmured. The creature didn't show any reaction to his words, instead crawling forward until the tips of its wings brushed his shoulders. Unlike his first meeting with the animal, he didn't feel terrified upon it getting close to him. As a matter of fact, the encounter was reminding him almost of whenever he comforted a member of his family.

He slowly slipped out of the creature's paws and grabbed the hat, returning to the animal's side. Dipper slowly reached up and placed the article on the dragon's shoulder. It stared at him almost in disbelief.

"If it makes you feel better," he repeated, disbelieving himself even as he spoke the words, "You can have it. It's not like I can use it anyway."

The creature gazed at him, then the hat, then him, for several moments. He couldn't believe he was offering the memories of his possibly dead friend up to an animal that had nearly destroyed his house. It was just, being near it while it seemingly mourned over the hat had really made an impact in his logical soul. It was shocking, unnatural, frightening, yet it strangely made him want to take care of the creature.

The animal turned its head and slowly reached down to grip the hat. It lifted it up before flinging back its neck just so the hat flew from its jaws and landed directly in between its wings. He felt the dragon's paws tighten around him before it nosed his face.

"Hey," he smiled. Dipper reached up and slowly stroked the creature's muzzle, listening to the raspy breaths it took. The fear of having a thousand-pound reptile pressed up against his back was almost completely gone. The animal clearly was not hostile at all.

They sat there for what felt like hours in the dying sunlight. In reality, Dipper knew it was only a few minutes, but everything seemed to slow down around his enormous companion. Finally, he felt the animal shift before hauling itself off the ground, leaving him with nothing to lean against.

The young detective got to his feet as the creature shook itself off, though it was extremely careful to not to displace the hat. As soon as it seemed done with ridding itself of the mud on its paws, the animal made as if to leave.

"Wait!" he found himself shouting. The dragon turned its head, the green eyes gazing into his soul. "Uh… aren't you going to say goodbye, or, something?"

The creature cocked its head, narrowing its eyes in concentration. He came to the conclusion it had no idea what he was saying. With speech out of the question, he slowly raised his hand and waved.

The animal seemed to notice what he meant immediately. Dipper's mouth opened as it raised a fifteen-foot wing, almost blowing him back with the following flap. Had it just attempted to reciprocate his parting gesture?

He didn't have time to answer himself before the animal took off into the woods. In just a few seconds, it was gone, the last of it whisping out of sight in the form of a retreating bright red tail.

Dipper stood there, almost stupefied. Beside him lay the last known remains of Wendy Corduroy, excluding her trademark hat. _Who knows where that could be now_? he asked himself, shaking his head almost in disbelief. The dragon could live anywhere. Perhaps it resided in the same mountain as the multi-bear, or maybe underground near his great uncle's house.

He numbly stuffed the clothes he had recovered into his backpack. After feeling such a surge of emotion, he felt as though he had none left.

The young detective went back the way he had come, once again trying to stay silent as he passed Manly Dan's house. He tread in the middle of the path, not stopping to look at any other interesting signs of wildlife or the supernatural. He was drained, unfeeling, stuck in a constant state of shock.

When he finally reached his home, he was eagerly greeted by his sister. "What'd you find, Dip?" she asked, smiling at him. He stared up at her, before finally croaking out an answer.

"The dragon."

Mabel's eyes widened. "You did? Did it hurt you? Did you fight it off?"

The makeshift door that Soos had put together in the back of the Shack swung open. Stan walked out, his eyes brightening at the sight of his grand-nephew. "Hey, kid. Any luck?"

"He found the dragon!" Mabel called, waving her arms.

Their great uncle frowned a bit. "Really? What happened?"

Dipper just gazed at them both, who were both looking back at him with slightly concerned faces. He slowly pulled off his damp pack and let it fall at his feet. "That… that wasn't all I found," he murmured, feeling his eyes grow slightly wet. His emotions were starting to return. He pulled back the zipper and wordlessly reached in, retrieving the remains of Wendy's flannel.

Mabel gasped. Grunkle Stan's mouth opened a bit in shock. The young detective simply hung his head, letting the sadness seep through his body. The piece of fabric in his hands held even more memories, consuming and flooding him in endless waves of nostalgia. Just feeling the material, still soft even after all its time in the creek bed, pricked his eyes with tears.

"I gave it her hat," Dipper continued shakily, wiping at his face. "It saw the hat and it just started… it just started to act like it knew her…"

His great uncle finally moved forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It wanted her hat?" he asked, almost in disbelief. Wordlessly, the young detective nodded, clutching the slightly wet remains of the flannel to his chest.

"Did you find anything else?" Mabel inquired quietly. She walked over to his side and looked at the flannel in his hands. He pointed to the pack before treading over to the cooler, which had been moved in a large pile with the table and a few larger pieces of the porch. He heard his sister pulling out the numerous articles silently, her mouth slowly opening the way Stan's had in shock.

Nobody spoke again. It was somewhat of an unspoken agreement between them. Dipper walked upstairs with the recovered flannel, while Mabel took his backpack into the living room to examine the remains. Stan, as much as he seemed worried about his great nephew, left the pair of twins alone for the rest of the night.

When Dipper reached his bed, he flopped onto the covers and held the flannel to his chest. He would have liked to believe he could still smell Wendy's slightly woodsy scent on the fabric, but the only thing his nose could pick up was the strong smell of river water. He scooted up until he heard something crinkling underneath him.

He sat up and retrieved the source of the noise. It was one of the maps he had been using while researching the location during the past few days. He stared at the countless markings, the ink splots and the creases where he had accidentally folded it.

In a sudden fit of emotion, he crumpled up the map and threw it into the trash.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Again, really not much to say in this author's note, other than the fact that this story is almost done. I should be done by Thursday, when I will do the big post of the rest of the story. I will be continuing Mountains as soon as this is done, don't worry. Also, you dudes better be waiting for a Christmas oneshot sometime soon!**


	5. Chapter 5

The next few days of Dipper's life felt strange. He wanted to feel miserable, but instead, he felt like he did whenever he found an important piece of information. He couldn't recall anything he had discovered that he would have found noteworthy, except maybe Wendy's clothes. It was weird, and he didn't like it.

Nearly a week after the unusual discovery, the young detective still hadn't shaken off the persistent feeling. It plagued him at every turn, insisting to him that he needed to investigate something. As much as he tried to push it down, the nagging thought came back up, refusing to leave him alone. He found himself snapping his pencil by accident while writing a paper perhaps five full days following the encounter.

Mabel, who was playing with Waddles on the other bed, looked up. "I'd know that face anywhere," she sighed, glancing down at his frustrated expression. "What's up?"

"I don't know," he admitted quietly. "Ever since I found Wendy's clothes in the mud, it's like something is missing. It's like I want to investigate something, but every time I try, I don't know what to look for."

Mabel pondered his reply for a moment. "Your crazy senses could be telling you that you seriously need a shower," she joked. Dipper glared at her slightly. She dropped her humorous tone and took on a more serious one. "Or, you know, maybe you saw something weird while you were there, and you just don't realize it?"

"The only weird thing I saw was the dragon," the young detective replied. He pulled out a portable pencil sharpener and started to fidget with it. "And since I already know I saw that, what else could it be?"

"Maybe there was something weird about the dragon," Mabel suggested. She placed Waddles back onto the ground and watched him start to chew on one of Dipper's discarded shirts. "You know, maybe it had a cut or something and you just aren't thinking of it."

"It wasn't injured or anything." Dipper scratched his head. "But even so, I think you could be right about this being about the dragon." He stretched a leg and returned his focus to his notes, newly-sharpened pencil in hand.

"Well, I'd say it was weird if it wanted Wendy's hat," his sister remarked. As she started across the room to collect her pig, Dipper realized that her words seemed to set off that feeling that had been nagging him for the past few days.

_It wanted Wendy's hat… The dragon wanted Wendy's hat… The dragon… wanted… Wendy… Wendy's hat… The dragon wanted… The dragon wanted to see Wendy…_

"Mabel, you're a genius!" Dipper cried, dropping his notes and causing his sister to jump into the air. She smiled at him, a prideful remark on the tip of her tongue before he continued. "The dragon must have known something about Wendy! That's why it was acting so weird around her clothes!"

He jumped off the bed and began pacing. "Ok, I need to find it again," he started. "Maybe I could find some way to communicate with it? I could teach it how to write, but then I would have to teach it English-"

"Dip!" Mabel called out, exasperated. "You don't need to talk to it! Animals are a lot like boys; if you spend time with them, you can figure out what they're thinking."

Dipper stopped his frantic pacing to consider what his sister had said. "You're right," he mused. "So… you're suggesting I just go find it and feed it or something?"

Mabel cogitated his words for a moment before shrugging. "Sure, that could work," she answered. Her brother jumped back onto his bed and packed up the notes he had been taking. He gave her a small smile as he swung his pack on and barreled down the stairs.

His sister looked after him, almost the way a mother would. "Once again, the power of Mabel comes through," she murmured to herself before hugging Waddles to her chest.

Down in the kitchen, Dipper was rummaging through the refrigerator. He had lost all the steaks in the accident, but there was half a roast ham that looked somewhat past its date in the back. He grabbed it and stuffed it into a plastic bag before shoving the entire bundle into his backpack, running out the door.

"I'll be back in a couple hours!" he shouted to his great uncle as he sprinted into the woods. Stan stared at the place where he had disappeared, scratching his head before shrugging and continuing to gather up the pieces of the porch.

Dipper sped through the forest excitedly. The talk with his sister had sparked the inner explorer within his mind once again, and he was eager to find the creature that could hold the answers to the case he had been on for over a year. Of course, he didn't really know where to find it, but he was sure that sooner or later, he would encounter the animal.

Naturally, though, he could not run forever. Around half a mile later, he was doubled over and panting in the middle of the woods. He let his pack fall to the ground and sat on it, staring through the trees. He could faintly hear running water, and knew he was close to the river on his original map.

Regaining his energy, he got to his feet and slung his backpack over his shoulders once again. Briefly he wondered if the dragon would be active enough during the day to be seen, since the only times he had seen it were at night and during late afternoon. He shrugged it off. Sure, it was noon, but he had been finding the supernatural ever since he started visiting Gravity Falls. He could find a dragon roughly the size of a tourist bus, couldn't he?

Apparently not. Two hours after he had rushed into the woods, and he still hadn't had any luck. To make matters worse, the poorly wrapped ham in his pack was starting to smell due to heat. Maybe the dragon wasn't particularly active during the daylight hours, but he knew other creatures were, and the stench would easily attract them. He considered giving up the search temporarily before he saw a set of footprints.

Running over to investigate, Dipper could tell they were clearly from the animal he was tracking down. They looked old, though, and were difficult to properly see in the cloudy afternoon light of the woods. The young detective looked about, scanning for any other signs of the animal and finding none.

As he got up, an idea suddenly came to mind. What if he were to try calling it? Sure, it didn't seem to understand much of what he said a few days ago, but it could obviously hear him. Perhaps it would recognize the sounds he made and come to see what the fuss was about.

He climbed a small boulder and lifted his pack, hoping the smell would possibly catch its attention as well. As he prepared to yell, it dawned on him he really didn't know what to shout. The creature didn't have a name he knew of, and he didn't know of any other calls. Settling on the lame but effective term of dragon, he shook his pack and cried out as loud as he could.

"Dragon!" he shouted. "Dragon! Er… where are you?"

No response came. Though a bit disappointed at first, Dipper reasoned with himself that maybe he wasn't close enough to where the animal was possibly sleeping. He carefully climbed down from the boulder and resumed walking through the woods, repeated calling out his chosen name for the creature.

As he wandered, occasionally yelling out the words, he noticed that the altitude was getting higher. Though feeling a bit cautious at first, the young detective remembered reading about dragons liking to live in higher places, much the way birds do. He was most likely on the right track. He pulled the now stinking ham out of his backpack, letting the smell waft out.

Soon the boy reached a large clearing of pine trees. He lifted the ham as high as he could and cried out the name once again. However, unlike his previous attempts, he suddenly heard something rustling about in the underbrush out of sight.

"Um… dragon?" he asked weakly, slowly lowering the ham. He heard a loud growl in reply. "You don't have to hide, I know it's you…"

Abruptly, he heard the sound of an animal sprinting towards him at an alarming rate. He could tell by the volume of the footfalls that this wasn't the creature he was searching for. He backed away and started to run as a gigantic wolf sprang out of the shrubbery, barking and snarling at him.

The young detective tore out of the clearing, tumbling and scrambling through the woods. The wolf was less than ten feet behind him, snapping and howling in hunger. He was now regretting bringing the ham deeply. The canine following him must have been attracted by it at first, but was now clearly far more interested in the skimpy boy that carried it.

One of his ankles caught in a tangle of thorns, but he didn't have time to slow down and free himself before he fell flat on his face. He could almost feel the wolf looming over him, licking its lips at the newfound prey. As he squeezed his eyes shut and prepared for the searing pain of the predator's jaws, he heard an almost alien roar rip apart the air.

The wolf froze, its mouth still open. The roar came again, louder this time. Dipper's eyes widened in disbelief as the hulking beast about to attack him whimpered and sprinted away, its tail between its legs. The last he saw of the creature was a gray blur retreating into the dark of the woods.

The young detective gasped as the source of the roaring flung itself into sight. The dragon towered over him, its green eyes narrowed and lips parted, exposing rows of gleaming silver teeth. It scanned the area, a low growl rising in its throat before seemingly deciding to itself that the threat was gone.

Dipper sat up, gazing at his savior. The dragon looked down at him, the angry look in its eyes fading away. After a second, the boy held out the ham, offering it to the gigantic creature before him.

The dragon lowered its head so that its eyes were level with Dipper's. He reached out further, almost poking the dragon's nose with the piece of meat. The animal snapped out of whatever it had been thinking and took the ham so fast that the young boy barely saw it leave his hand. He watched as the dragon tore it apart and swallowed the pieces as though it hadn't eaten in months.

_Maybe it hasn't_, he thought to himself. Slowly it dawned on him that the animal did appear rather skinnier than what he would expect from a creature its size. There was also the matter of it going for the steaks he had dropped when he had first spotted it, rather than it smelling him out and finding him. Was he feeding a starving animal? It would make sense of why it ate so urgently.

_If it is starving, then I'm the luckiest person in the world_, Dipper thought to himself. _It's had more chances to eat me than I've had to solve mysteries_.

The dragon finished up the ham before slowly lowering itself to the ground. It settled down much the way a dog would, folding its wings against its back firmly and letting its limbs go limp. He thought back to why he was here. Find out what the dragon knows about Wendy. Oh. Right.

"So, um, I noticed that you really liked that hat I gave you the other day," Dipper began, scratching the side of his head. "And… you know, it belonged to this person I knew well. Like, really well. I had known her ever since I was four years old. And I know this is going to sound crazy, but she went missing about a year ago."

The dragon had raised its head, looking at him interestedly. As he gazed at the creature, he noticed something he hadn't before. Folded underneath one of its wings was a bundle of tannish fur. As he moved closer to the dragon, he could see it was Wendy's hat.

"You kept it," he murmured, a little bit in shock. He hadn't expected the animal to care enough to carry it around with it, especially not in the crook of its wing. After all, didn't it need to fly? Had he even seen it fly once?

_That's strange_, he thought to himself. _The wings are easily big enough to fly with, so why haven't I seen it trying at all_?

He snapped back into reality as he heard the dragon nosing the hat further into the crook. "And it looks like you kept it, so, you know, I guess that means you maybe knew her or whatever…" This one-sided conversation was growing more and more awkward. If this thing was smart enough to carry a hat around under its wing, then why couldn't it understand a word he said?

"And, well, maybe you saw what happened to her when she went missing," the boy continued. "Gosh," he moaned to himself. "Mabel said you might know something, but how am I even supposed to know that you know Wendy existed? I mean, maybe you just want that hat because it's warm, or something." Even though he knew this clearly wasn't true, he wanted to see if the dragon would even take note of what he said. It didn't.

"I mean, I can even remember the day that she left," he mused quietly. "She was so happy that day, even though she was half asleep most of the morning." He laughed to himself. The sound made the dragon immediately focus on him, and it tilted its head almost in concentration.

"You know, she was one of the only people who ever treated me like I wasn't crazy," he said softly. "Especially that day." The boy's memories slowly focused back on a year ago, the day his best friend went missing.

It had been one of those strange days, where it was mostly sunny, but cloudy at the same time. Wendy Corduroy had come to work bored and exhausted. Dipper could clearly remember her groaning about having to stay up all night trying to find the remote to turn off the TV. He had sat beside her, almost equally tired, and nearly fallen asleep on the counter.

The morning was uneventful, as was lunch break and most of the afternoon. Of course, there had been the occasional rude customer and grumpy Stan, but the business otherwise ran without a hitch that day. In the late afternoon, just before Wendy left, however, the golf cart had been discovered with a large, mysterious dent in it. The lumberjack girl and the young detective had denied all claims against them stating they had done it, even though they were clearly lying. Stan had stormed off and left them to fix it.

After Soos helped Wendy and Dipper patch up the golf cart, Wendy's shift ended. Remembering her leaving was the only really painful part of the memory, and Dipper squeezed his eyes shut as the images flew through his head. She had said goodbye to him, affectionately pushed down the brim of his hat, and ridden away on her bike. Of course, he had never seen her again.

"Yean, that day was pretty nice, actually," he thought out loud. The dragon murmured a bit to itself and shifted its weight from side to side. "The day after it was pretty terrible, though."

Visions of Stan yelling, Mabel trying to comfort the young boy, Dan organizing a search party, tears rolling down his own face, Soos coming back out of the woods and shaking his head all flashed through his mind in an instant. Dipper gritted his teeth slightly. "Awful day," he continued. "That was the day I started the search. And, you know, I had to go home when summer was over, but I didn't stop looking. I'd never stop looking."

The dragon seemed to have grown strangely uncomfortable. Its eyes were darting around the forest, and every so often its tail lashed and smacked against the dirt. It was clearly intrigued by the noises the little human was making with his mouth, but was apparently unnerved by them as well.

"That's why I wanted to talk to you," he sighed. "I mean, she's really awesome, and you kinda seem like you know who she was, so, you know, maybe you saw her at some point? Maybe when she went into the woods, you saw her disappear? Maybe-"

He was interrupted as the dragon made a loud growling noise in its throat. He glanced down in shock to see it had dug its claws into the ground, every muscle tensed. Dipper looked over the clearing, but couldn't see any predators around. _Why is it so uncomfortable, then_? he wondered.

"You know, maybe I should just go home," he whispered. "I mean, it's not like you could tell me anything if you wanted to."

The dragon shook itself as Dipper got to his feet, picking up his backpack, which still reeked of expired ham. As he started out of the clearing, he heard the footsteps of the oversized reptile behind him. The young detective sighed as he set off through the woods with the creature following.

He was passing the stream when he heard the footsteps stop. Looking back, he could see that the dragon had stopped and was gulping down water from the creek. Even though he was prepared to move on without it, he felt what almost felt like a tugging, drawing him back to the animal's side. The dragon looked up for a moment before turning back to lap up more water.

"Do you miss Wendy?" he suddenly questioned. The dragon gave no sign it had heard him except a slight cock of its head. "I mean… you probably knew her at some point, right? Maybe you forgot her…"

The low rumbling came from the dragon's throat again. It wasn't exactly what he could call a growl, but the sound was not a happy one all the same. He reached out and slowly stroked the orangy red scales on its side, hoping to calm it a bit. The creature relaxed slightly and finished its last swallow of water, turning around to face him.

He rubbed his arm a bit and stared at the ground. Looking the great predator in the eye was difficult. "You know, if you ever knew her in the first place…" he trailed off. His breath caught in his throat a bit.

The dragon made another sound, but it didn't sound as agitated as the rumbling. It was more like the reptilian equivalent of a sigh, as hard as that was to comprehend. Dipper looked up as the creature's tail lightly flicked him on the shoulder.

"Guess I should get going," he pondered. The animal lowered its head and gently butted him with its horns. He laughed quietly before shrugging his pack further up and continuing through the woods.

A few meters from the eyesight of the Shack, though, something strange happened. The dragon stopped dead, almost frozen. Dipper heard the footsteps stopping once more and turned around, walking back to where the animal stood.

"Hey, it's ok," he assured the creature softly. "You can go a bit further if you want." He had no idea why he was encouraging the animal. It just seemed like the right thing to do.

Still, the dragon remained stationary. It made no sound or movement. As a matter of fact, the only thing that told Dipper the creature hadn't been petrified or something was the very quick rise and fall of its sides. He reached over and tried to pull on its paw, backing away in shock when it suddenly bared its teeth.

"Ok, ok, I'm going!" he grumbled, though deep down, hurt was flowing through him. The animal, as uncaring and destructive as it was, was his only connection to a girl he had loved as much as life itself. It was possible it had witnessed her on the fateful day she went missing, and for that, Dipper knew that he wasn't the only one who must be plagued by the hunger for answers every night. With the dragon, he felt a connection, as though some of the burden and grief of Wendy was lifted from his shoulders.

The creature behind him hung its head, almost shamefully. He heard it abruptly bounding away into the depths of the woods. Just like that, he was on his own.

He groaned to himself and hugged one of the straps of his pack. He didn't know why he felt so abandoned all of a sudden. That dragon, according to his uncle, was nothing but trouble. Why couldn't he seem to keep his thoughts off it and just look for his missing friend normally?

He walked the ten meters to the Mystery Shack alone. Stan had gone inside since he had started the search for the dragon. The young detective couldn't blame him. The day was getting colder, and the weather didn't look as though it were going to be sunny anytime soon.

As he walked back into the Shack and flopped down on a chair, he couldn't help but think about why the creature hadn't wanted to get any closer to his great uncle's tourist trap. Sure, the place was obviously a bit creepy, especially for a supernatural animal, but nothing had stopped it from eating their garbage and destroying their porch.

Huh. Eating garbage. _That thing must really be starving_, Dipper thought. If it was hungry enough to consume the admittedly disgusting garbage of the Pines family, it must be hungry enough to consume rocks. As funny as the idea seemed in his head, the young detective couldn't bring himself to laugh.

He took a detour to drop off his pack in the living room before cleaning up a small bunch of plastic bags he had left in the kitchen. When everything downstairs was in order, he started up to the attic to tell his sister the bad news.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, dudes, no author's notes until chapter ten, since this is a mass-post. Don't worry, though, I'll have the full message up there.**


	6. Chapter 6

That night, Dipper couldn't fall asleep.

Mabel lay snoring quietly in the other bed, with the dark form of Waddles curled up at her belly. The small noises from her weren't keeping Dipper awake. Instead, he couldn't take his mind off what had happened during the day.

Images of the dragon growing uncomfortable as he spoke of Wendy flooded through his mind. If he hadn't been positive about it knowing something before, he was now. He briefly wondered if the creature was sitting outside the Shack, waiting to cause another disturbance. Maybe the animal was as lonely as he was. He remembered reading somewhere that most reptiles are solitary, but the creature seemed to like spending time with him.

He slowly ran his fingers through his hair. He still hadn't gotten another hat, but the young detective was growing used to going without it. He'd probably get another from the gift shop at some point.

_Tomorrow_, he vowed to himself, _I am going to do some research on dragon behavior in this town_.

With the promise made, the boy finally began to rest.

The next morning, however, did not start out the way he planned.

He woke with Waddles curled up inches from his face, like a giant pink cat. The young detective mumbled a few drowsy words before pushing away the pig, who hopped onto the floor and headed downstairs. He glanced at the other bed, which was empty. Mabel must have already gone to eat breakfast.

Dipper flopped out of bed and slithered across the floor, pulling on what looked like clean pair of shorts and a shirt. The morning sun shined relentlessly through the window. He grumbled and shut the curtains before realizing he had left the journal sitting on the table in the living room. Great.

Mabel, as he had guessed, was already wolfing down a bowl of cereal in the kitchen. He walked past her, offering a half-hearted wave before finally finding his old tome. As he started to walk back upstairs to start his studies, he sister waved him over to where she was sitting.

"Aw, Dip, you aren't going to spend your entire day cooped up inside reading, are you?" she asked, taking a bite of her breakfast.

"No, I'm actually going out to that internet cafe to research something," Dipper replied, shoving the book into his vest.

"Research what?"

"The behaviour and history of dragons in Gravity Falls," the young detective announced proudly. Mabel swallowed and gave him a slightly doubtful look.

"Uh, you sure you want to do that, bro?" she asked. "I mean, you've been kinda wrapped up in all this dragon biz a whole bunch lately, and, you know, don't you want to take a break?" She smiled and waved her arms around inside her sweater.

"Nah, I'm really close to a break in the case," he declined politely. "But, uh, don't worry though, because as soon as I'm done, I promise to hang out with you!"

This seemed good enough for his exuberant sister. She grinned and tousled his hair, much to his annoyance, and left to empty her bowl out in the sink. He smiled slightly after her before running upstairs and setting his journal carefully on the table next to his bed. "I'll see you later," he declared. As much faith as he had in the old book, he knew that the internet would be far more efficient for finding articles and such on what he needed.

He ran back downstairs and out the door, heading down the dirt road that led into town. The cafe was pretty close to the edge of the village, and he wasn't worried about the distance much. It wasn't like the distance to the mini golf place or anything.

He soon arrived at the cafe. There were no more than ten people there already, most of them eating bagels or simply staring out the window blankly. Dipper frowned a bit, but he really couldn't blame them for being tired. It was around eight or nine in the morning after all.

The young detective sat himself down at a computer and started his search immediately. Most of the big name newspapers didn't have anything on dragons, much less the town itself, but the Gravity Falls Gossiper had its own website. As strange and occasionally incorrect as the paper was, Dipper really didn't have any other choice than to go out and interview every last person on supernatural activity, which he admittedly had done enough of to make everyone turn away his requests. Besides, even though it wasn't the most reliable of sources, the young detective knew that every story did have a bit of truth behind it.

After what felt like roughly hours of searching, the young boy hit the jackpot.

_Recent Speculation About The Existence Of Dragons Leads To New Discoveries_

He could barely believe his eyes. It was perfect! He got out a pad and started frantically writing down notes.

_Ever since the mysterious sighting of what seventeen eyewitnesses claim to be a dragon, somewhat of a reptile mania has swept the town of Gravity Falls. Scientists are putting down work temporarily to study the possibilities, while townsfolk are keeping a twenty four hour watch on the last place the creature was supposedly sighted. Even the local tourist trap, called The Mystery Shack, has set up a series of exhibits showcasing our portrayal of dragons through the ages. However, one scientist and reptile enthusiast Dr. R. D. Morts, has made a connection between the possible existence of the animals and the unusually highly rumoured existence of magic in the area._

"_Dragons have been shown to have a connection with magic since the beginning of time," Morts says. "In fact, almost every tale with a dragon contains magic as well. This leads me to believe that there is some sort of system for creating dragons that does not involve ordinary reproduction, specifically, a type of curse."_

_This guy is full of it_, Dipper thought to himself, amused, though not stopping his messy scribbling.

"_I believe that perhaps since there aren't enough dragons for an official species, but yet they have been around for centuries, that they don't have any kind of reproduction at all. According to legend, they live as solitary predators for most of their lives. They are powerful, but overwhelmingly alone. Does that sound like a punishment to you? It sure would have to those in the medieval ages. I believe that magicians back then created some sort of protocol, or equation, to bring dragons into existence, and we have just forgotten it. It still happens occasionally by accident, explaining why they are so rare."_

_Mort's theories are strongly supported by a local cryptozoologist by the name of Dr. S. Ashers, who has spent most of his life studying the behavior and possible existence of Oregon's famed mythical beasts. He believes in a similar theory, but not an identical one._

"_Dragons are shown to have very human like emotions, especially ones found in more urban areas," says Ashers. "Strangely, sometimes dragons will show up abruptly after the unexplained disappearance of a human. The connection is too strong to deny - dragons must actually be humans, cursed to remain in reptilian form by either spiritual force or amataur magician. As a matter of fact, my studies show that there is a one out of five chance of a dragon appearing for no reason, not connected to anything particular."_

_These theories are strongly supported by the newly forming cryptozoologist community of Gravity Falls. However, without concrete evidence, the police department refuses to take part in any investigations of previous disappearances of humans by studying the possible existence of dragons in the area._

Dipper's heart was beating at what felt like a million thumbs per second. His pad was covered in hasty notes. Everything added up. The humanism emotions of the dragon, the obvious concern about Wendy, the rescuing of him when he was injured - the animal had to be a cursed human!

He logged out of the computer and ran out of the cafe at full tilt. A few of the older customers groaned and glared at him, but he didn't slow his pace. He hadn't been so excited in weeks. If he could somehow cure the person, they could tell him what they knew about Wendy!

The young detective sped across a road, annoying a truck driver and scaring a stray dog. He could see the trail leading up to the Mystery Shack ahead, and increased the speed of his sprint. He was growing winded now, but the pure adrenaline pumping through his veins kept him upright and running. The young boy crossed the final sidewalk and shot up the dirt road at speeds that would make a cheetah jealous.

He burst through the front door, startling his sister and making Grunkle Stan look up from his current TV show. "Break in the case!" he shouted breathlessly to Mabel, flailing his arms as he ran up the stairs. Cure. Cure. He needed to find a cure. He was going to find a cure.

As soon as he reached his room, however, his wimpy little body decided to let him know just how realistically painful it was to sprint half a mile. He slowed to a halt in front of his bed, adrenaline still buzzing through him faintly, and began to feel the enormous fatigue settling in.

Dipper slumped onto his mattress, exhausted beyond physical belief. He rubbed his face against his pillow and couldn't help but fantasize how good it would feel to just fall back asleep for a few hours. He dropped his notes onto the table and cuddled up into his cot, snugging beneath the covers…

"Dipper! What'd you find?"

He looked up to see Mabel's grinning face and snapped back into reality. Hastily pushing back his bedsheets, the young detective grabbed his pad of notes and excitedly began to explain.

"You know the dragon? It might not be a dragon at all! Apparently some cryptozoologists think that dragons are actually cursed human beings!" he exclaimed, pointing to a few notes on the top of his paper. "I mean, this is so awesome! If I can find a cure, maybe the person can tell me what they know about Wendy!"

"Or, you know, you can cure them so that they can be humans again," Mabel laughed. "Dip, that's great!"

"I know!" he nearly squealed. "Ok, I need to find a cure as fast as I can. If there were a cure on the internet, I think I would have found it, so that leaves…" He considered his options for a moment before he and his sister shouted out the answer at the exact same time. "The journal!"

"Jinx!" his sister shouted, bopping him on the nose before grabbing the old tome and thrusting it into his hands. "Come on, bro, if it's anywhere, it's in there!"

Dipper nodded and started flipping through the pages wildly. "Gnomes, floating eyeballs, mysterious portal-thingy…" he mumbled under his breath. "Bill, magic crystals, weird mushroom- yes! I think I found something!"

He got into a comfortable sitting position on his bed and started reading aloud. Mabel climbed up and settled next to him, peering over his shoulder as he retold the mysterious page.

"Dragons!" he said excitedly. His face abruptly became a confused one. "Wait, I should have been looking in the journal all along… What a waste of time that was…"

"Just read it," Mabel insisted, leaning against his shoulder.

Dipper cleared his throat. "Previously believed to be no more than an unusual myth," he began to relay, "it turns out that dragons do indeed exist in Gravity Falls in a higher concentration than any other place in the world. According to my studies, this is due to the strangely high quantity of magic, causing more unfortunate wildlife and even occasionally humans to be morphed into them either by curse or accident." He stopped reading for a moment and scratched his chin. "At least we know that's true…

"What makes them so hard to study is that they keep the traits of whatever creature was changed into them, which are most often squirrels and deer. More often than not the traits make them elusive and highly frightened of humans, except in the case that the dragon is a human itself. Unfortunately, because of the townsfolk's fear of the predators, humans looking to reunite themselves with their families are often," the young detective gulped, "shot."

"That's terrible!" Mabel cried. "I mean, what if you were turned into a dragon, and when you tried to go home, your own dad chased you away with a pitchfork?"

"No kidding," Dipper replied. "Ugh, there's nothing in here about a cure…"

"Did you try using the blacklight yet?" Mabel suggested. She was now nearly as excited as he was. Clearly, he hadn't been the only one itching to know what was up with the strange reptile that plagued their home, even if he had been the only one to go looking for it on purpose.

"No, I didn't," the young detective replied. "That's actually a great idea, though. Can you get the lights?"

Mabel nodded and ran over to the door, closing it and switching the already dim bulb on the ceiling off. While she was accomplishing this, Dipper reached under his bed and pulled out a small handheld blacklight, which he switched on and shined on the page he was currently studying. Mabel trotted back to the bed and made herself comfortable as her brother found what he was looking for.

"Of course!" he shouted, nearly dropping the book. His sister, now more eager than ever, poked him hard. "Ow! Ok, ok, I'm reading!

"Any average creature either cursed into a dragon or simply turned into one by a spiritual product of the forest can be easily cured with a simple recipe. However, this will not work to revert an actual dragon into another form, or to break a curse made by particularly powerful race such as fairies or witches." Dipper grinned. "Ok, we need lemon juice, rosemary, lavender, and-" The boy suddenly winced. "The blood of a doe?"

"I don't want to hurt a deer," Mabel fretted. "Do we really have to hurt a deer? They're so cute!"

"Well, I guess we could always try to get some from roadkill," Dipper winced. "That's going to be gross."

"We have to do it, Dip!" Mabel exclaimed. "For the dragon person!"

The boy groaned. "Ok, I'll keep an eye out for any deer carcasses," he gave in. "We won't hurt any deer."

Mabel grinned at him and poked him in the side, provoking a yelp of discomfort from her brother. He gave her a good-natured smile before hopping off his bed. "This is going to be great! Mystery twins!" the young artist shouted, following him.

"You think we should ask around and see if anybody else wants to help?" Dipper asked, sliding the book into his vest. Mabel shook her head before seemingly reconsidering the decision.

"Soos might want to help," she mused, stopping briefly to scratch her head. "I mean, he likes mystery stuff."

"Alright, I'll ask Soos," Dipper mentally added to his list of things to do. "And I'll go out and try to get proof of the dragon being an actual human."

He grinned at his sister, who eagerly returned the gesture. "We can do this!"


	7. Chapter 7

Dipper was practically biting his fingernails off. He had just a few minutes before Soos walked through the door of the gift shop, and he and Mabel could ask him if he wanted to partake in an epic quest to return the dragon back to normal. Though he privately knew that the man-child would be overjoyed to help, he knew how much Mabel wanted to ask dramatically. However, being the more tactful of the 'Mystery Twins', he was left with a far less enjoyable assignment: asking Grunkle Stan.

It wasn't that he didn't like his great uncle, nearly the opposite actually. It was just that he was a bit scared of asking. He knew how much Stan hated the dragon, even privately theorizing that the older man was worried about it destroying his emotional state, and honestly had pretty much confirmed he would decline. Despite this, Mabel insisted that he at least offer the chance. They needed all the help they could get.

He hesitated at the entrance to the living room, where his great uncle, as always, was watching TV. He knew Mabel wanted to ask him along, but did he really have to ask? He supposed he could always pretend he had. Deciding against this, the young detective walked into the room and took a seat beside Stan.

"What's up, kid?" Grunkle Stan asked without looking down, startling his great nephew. Dipper started to scratch the back of his neck, having second thoughts. Well, he had started. Now he had to finish.

"Um, we found out that a lot of dragons are actually humans," the young detective began, wishing he didn't sound so stupid. "And we found a cure too. I was, uh, wondering if you wanted to help us find the dragon and change it back."

Grunkle Stan sighed. "Dipper, that dragon is a menace. It destroyed over five hundred dollar's worth of my house. If it really is a human, it's probably the worst one that ever existed."

"Yeah, but if it's a human, it won't be able to bother us anymore!" the boy tried to reason. However, his great uncle was having none of it.

"Don't you think that there could be a reason that the human's a dragon?" Stan asked, still refusing to look down. "People don't get cursed for no reason, kid. Maybe the person did something terrible. Being a dragon could suit it far better than its previous life."

"Yeah, but what if it doesn't?" This was going to be Dipper's last comeback. He had come here knowing it was a lost cause, and nothing was going to change that.

"I don't want that thing anywhere near my house again," his great uncle growled. "Or near any of you. You can go on your little hunt or whatever, but I'm not coming."

Dipper hung his head and nodded, giving in. He knew his sister was expecting it about as much as he was, but he couldn't help feeling a little bit failed, as though he hadn't done all he could. The boy threaded back up the stairs and flopped on the bed, waiting for Mabel to return.

Soon, he heard a pair of footsteps rushing up the stairs. One of the sets was definitely heavier than the other, but was moving just as fast. He looked up just in time to see Soos and Mabel burst through the doorway, eager smiles on both of their faces.

"Dude, Mabel told me all about the dragon!" Soos shouted excitedly. "I'm totally willing to help!"

The man-child's comment, as simple as it was, definitely raised Dipper's spirits after hearing someone so opposed to the idea. He looked over the smiles of his friend and sister, and felt as though the weight in his chest was beginning to lift up.

"That's great!" he replied. He reached into his vest and pulled out the journal. "Ok, so I'm thinking for the plan that we need time to collect the ingredients. Can you guys do that?"

Soos pulled back his hat and saluted, while Mabel crossed her arms and put on a determined expression. As the young detective gazed over the two and let the weight lift further, he couldn't help but feel as though there were something missing.

"And I'll try to find the dragon," he concluded, trying to act as though he hadn't felt anything. "Maybe we could get it to come here to cure it at a certain time or something."

"Sounds good, dipping sauce," Mabel replied. "We'll be out getting cinnamon and stuff if you need us."

"Good luck finding the dragon, dude!" Soos shouted as they headed towards his pickup truck. Dipper watched as his sister climbed into the passenger seat, and Soos hopped into behind the wheel. The two drove away, leaving a large cloud of dust.

The young detective felt far more elated now that he had a team. He ran back upstairs, though he was careful to avoid Grunkle Stan. Walking past him now was sure to be awkward. He set the journal down. As much as he wanted to bring it along and show the dragon, the accident with the waterfall had made him realize just how risky it was to bring an ancient book on a dangerous mission.

Soon, the young boy was walking through the woods. Being morning, he was once again worried about the dragon not showing up. The only reason it had come last time was the scent of the rotting ham attracting it, and he didn't have anything for it to eat now. He would have to track it, the way survivalists did it the movies.

He was around half a mile into the dark woods when he spotted his first clue. The young detective ran over to the long line of footprints, winding their way up towards the mountain. He supposed that the dragon resided in a cave like in tales of medieval times, and knew he must be on the right track. Trotting alongside the track at a slow pace, he started to follow the dragon's trail.

However, discouragement came quickly. Half an hour later and the young boy was sweaty, exhausted, and in difficulties. He had met a large cliff face that the creature had seemingly climbed up on its own, using nothing but its incredible size to scale the mountain. _Why didn't it fly_? he asked himself. At this point, maybe losing the trail would be better than trying to follow an impossible one.

Suddenly, he heard a loud noise above him. He glanced up in shock to see a gigantic piece of fallen rock plummeting down, just fractions of a second from hitting him. He rolled underneath a ledge and felt the air catching and refusing to enter his lungs as the stone made contact with the earth. The utter adrenaline from the shock was making it difficult for him to breath.

As soon as he felt the tension in his limbs starting to fade, he looked up from where he had hidden his face in his vest. The massive rock had smashed into the ground with the force of a comet. Tentatively looking up to where it had fallen, he got his answer as to why.

The dragon peered down at him from atop a ledge, narrowed green eyes staring into his emotionlessly. He felt his heart rate immediately increase. The massive predator, unlike in their previous encounter, was obviously not calm.

He slowly retreated from underneath his hiding place, trying to return the burning gaze of the creature. "Hi!" he shouted up, his voice cracking. He started to curse himself loudly inside his brain.

A low rumble in response shook the cliff. Dipper had to duck as the gargantuan reptile leaped down from its perch, skidding down the cliff loudly and stirring up clouds of orangy dust. It landed on its feet beside him with a massive thump, and he tried not to wince as the animal's claws sunk into the ground as though it were the flesh of something recently killed.

Once the fear of having the great animal beside him wore off, Dipper began to recall why exactly he had come. Mabel and Soos were most likely done getting the ingredients now. They were probably looking on the side of the road for dead deer. As he wrinkled his nose, he knew he would have to keep his portion of the work.

"So," he started, glancing up at the dragon. "This is probably going to sound really stupid, but are you actually a human?"

The dragon didn't even look at him. Instead, it stared off into the distance, almost as though it were searching for something. He had seen that look on Mabel whenever she went looking for mom in the grocery store.

"I mean, you don't have to answer in words," he tried to start again, looking up and trying to meet the beast's eyes. "It would be totally ok if you just made a gesture with your tail or something. But I kinda need an answer if I'm going to cure you."

The animal's gaze snapped down to him, making him cringe slightly. All of a sudden, the dragon's demeanour changed. The icy stare softened, and for the first time since his original sighting of it that day, he saw true emotion in the creature's eyes. However, he probably would have felt slightly better if the dragon didn't look so sad.

"Hey, um, it's ok," he assured it awkwardly, reaching out to stoke its scales. He felt a tiny smile spreading across his face as an enormous purr erupted from the animal's throat. The misery written clearly in its expression faded a bit, and he felt himself cheering on the inside.

"So, like that! All you need to do is show emotion," he encouraged. "I just need confirmation that you're really a human under all those scales."

The dragon once again showed no sign of hearing him, but continued to vibrate the ground with its tremendous purring. Dipper's teeth were practically clacking together. The sound reverberated off the cliffs, making it sound louder than it actually was. Suddenly, the creature's head snapped up and every muscle in its body tensed, the purr dying out.

"What's wrong?" he found himself asking. The creature's eyes were narrowed down to slits. Perhaps a large predator had come into its territory? Did it even have territory? He continued to consider the options before the massive reptile lunged forward into the woods.

He tried to see where it had gone when he realized it was just a few feet ahead, looking back at him. The eyes were more or less back to normal, but they didn't look any happier.

"You want me to follow you?" he asked, cocking his head. The dragon made a loud snorting noise in reply, and he shrugged. The animal hopefully meant him no harm. Following it wouldn't end in disaster. He started walking after the animal as it set a slow pace, lumbering through the trees without ever stopping to investigate anything. Of course, with it being almost a hundred times his size, he had to tread considerably faster to keep up.

The dragon paused when they were around a quarter of a mile from where they started, allowing Dipper to catch up. He leaned on the creature's side, relishing the chance to catch his breath. The animal looked almost amused at his exhaustion, its body relaxed and eyes playful. Dipper smiled at the animal's lightheartedness before watching its expression go back to serious in an instant.

_It's almost like something is trying to keep it from being happy_, he thought to himself as the creature got to its feet and stumbled forward, stopping after a meter or two to look impatiently back to him. It shoved its head forward in a rather urgent gesture, imploring him to continue following.

He once again began to trot after the creature, who he noticed had increased its speed slightly. However, this time, he realized that he was recognizing the woods around him more and more. He was getting closer to the far edge of town, where he had tried to avoid until a few weeks ago.

The dragon stopped suddenly. He almost ran into the large tail, which was now lashing back and forth almost in fear. The young detective tried to look the same direction the animal was doing, and felt his heart crack a little when he finally spotted the creature's current interest.

It was Wendy's cabin.

"No, no, we can't go here," he murmured to it quietly. "Manly Dan doesn't like it when people go on his property, and I'm guessing he doesn't like dragons, either."

The dragon made a loud whimpered noise in its throat. A heavy feeling set in his chest, and the younger boy recognized it with a pang. He could almost share the feeling of utter hopelessness spread out across his companion's face, and the way it looked tense and depressed at the same time.

"Come on, we have to go," he urged it, tugging a bit on the tip of its tail. The dragon whipped around and he flinched as the eyes widened, staring at him with an almost challenging expression. "We can't stay!"

The creature made the same whimpering noise, but louder. He felt a tiny bit of annoyance settling in, and tugged harder. His eyes widened in sudden regret as the creature hissed a bit in pain. "I'm sorry!" he apologized, placing a hand on its flank. "But we have to get out of here!"

As the young detective started to walk away, he noticed the dragon wasn't following. It stayed perfectly still, staring after him with a hollow expression. When he looked back, something seemed to change inside him. It finally hit him that he couldn't leave it behind to be found and possibly injured by the grieving lumberjack.

Dipper rushed back and grabbed hold of one of its paws, yanking fearfully. "Come on!" he commanded, only to be shaken off by the creature. He pulled harder, and this time the animal flicked him almost painfully with its tail.

He stared up at the dragon, which glared back, the eyes narrowed. What frightened him most about the expression was that behind the anger, he could clearly see sorrow and pain.

"Come on!" he yelled, grabbing the paw and pulling so hard that his fingernails dug into the scales. The dragon snarled at him, and he let go, backing away in terror.

A heavy silence fell over the clearing. The only sounds Dipper could hear now were the heavy breaths of his companion and his own pounding heart. He looked at the animal and winced at the betrayed look in its eyes. Why did he feel so guilty all of a sudden?

He got his answer when the animal made a loud noise. It wasn't like any noise he had heard from anything before. The closest thing he could compare it to would be a sob.

He ran back to the animal's side as it began to cry much the way a wounded dog would. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he whispered to it, feeling tears prick at the edge of his eyes. He could almost feel the presence of the little cabin, just fifteen meters or so from where he stood. The dragon's breaths were coming quicker now. Now it bore such a resemblance to a human's whimpers that the guilt was swamping him, making every muscle in his body limp as he listened.

He knew reptiles could not produce tears the way humans did, but from the dazed and miserable look in the creature's eyes, Dipper knew was truly crying. He buried his face in the scaly side as tears ran down his own cheeks, making his body shudder with weakness. He tried to brush them away, but there were more and more to replace them.

_At least I know it's human now_, he silently decided to himself. No animal, especially not a wild dragon, would every show such signs of weakness and sadness in front of a human, except a human itself.

The two stood for a long time, Dipper's face buried embarrassedly in the creature's side and the creature itself staring hollowly into the sky. He could still hear the occasional hitch of its breath as it struggled to return to its normal state.

"I'm sorry," he whispered one last time. The sorrow that followed the dragon's whimper made his limbs ache in response. He finally felt the powerful muscles beneath its skin starting to move as it pulled itself out of the stunned position it had been in. The creature, now standing at full height, lowered its head and nuzzled his hair, as though asking for him to stand upright as well.

As soon as he had regained his composure, the creature began to walk once more. However, unlike last time, it was a respectful walk, and it set a pace he could match. As the cabin disappeared from sight, he and the animal simultaneously let out a soft sighing noise.

"I miss Wendy a lot," he finally admitted. Though he now knew the creature could not understand his speech, he knew it would be able to empathize with what he said. As he guessed, the dragon gave a low murmur in response and nudged him gently.

When Dipper and the dragon finally reached the path that lead back to the Mystery Shack, the young detective knew this was where they would have to part ways. He placed a hand to his forehead and looked up at the creature beside him sadly. "I guess this is my stop," he breathed.

The creature rested its head on his shoulder. He could feel the heartbeat in its throat and couldn't help but smile. No matter how the animal looked on the outside, there was most definitely a human underneath.

"You should probably be getting home too," he continued gently, touching its nose. "Wherever that is," he added under his breath. He still hadn't found any sort of cave where the animal could possibly reside. He had to come to the conclusion that maybe it really didn't live anywhere. It was a big enough predator that things wouldn't bother it if slept in the open, and he had found it in a large range of places.

The dragon lifted its head from his shoulder and butted him playfully. At last, the light was returning to its eyes. Knowing that the animal next to him was once again happy, he felt something within him slide into place. He could go home now and sleep without guilt.

"Goodbye," he called, setting down the trail. He had to cover his mouth and prevent a laugh when the creature responded with a loud call not too different from his own. It was a gibberish noise, but conveyed the same upbeat emotion he emitted. The creature faded from his sight as it retreated back into the brush, the rust-like skin blending in surprisingly well.

He turned back around and started back to his own home. However, he realized that he could once again hear a loud patterning of footsteps, getting closer and closer as he neared the Shack.

Suddenly, Mabel burst out of the shadows, scaring the daylights out of her poor twin. "We found a deer!" she called gleefully.

Dipper regained his partially dignified stance after a moment, meeting Mabel with an encouraging smile. "That's great!" he congratulated. "Where is it?"

"On the side of the road not far from here," Mabel replied. "Come on, Soos is waiting for us!"

The two dashed through the brush, soon reaching the road the slightly older twin had in mind. The young detective spotted Soos crouching over a large brownish lump in the grass. As excited as he was, he couldn't help but feel sorry for the tall, female deer lying bloody and lifeless in the grass.

"Do you guys have a vial, or something we can collect blood with?" Dipper asked. Soos shook his head apologetically while Mabel curiously investigated her pockets. With a huge smile, she pulled out an empty mini-jar of jam, the kind you would see in a fancy buffet. As much as Dipper wondered where in the world she had found that, he eagerly gestured for her to hand it over.

Mabel passed her brother the jar excitedly. He slowly lowered himself down and investigated the body of the doe, trying to calculate the best place for blood collection. The book hadn't specified what part of the body the blood had to be from, or how fresh the blood had to be, but he was still determined to get the best.

The small thirteen year old finally settled on a particularly large wound in the neck and pressed the mouth of the jar up to it. He squeezed the sides of the cut and fought down squeamishness as dark crimson squirted out, making a sickening noise. He could see Soos and Mabel wincing on either side of him, with his sister going as far as to cover her ears. He relaxed when there was finally enough of the liquid pooled on the bottom to be sufficient. The young detective clasped the lid on tight.

"How's this?" he asked, holding up the jar for his friend and sister to see. Soos scratched his chin.

"Looks like it'll work," the man-child replied, a small grin spreading across his face. "That dragon dude'll be pretty happy."

"No kidding!" Mabel projected earnestly. "That poor person's probably been stuck like that for ages!"

Dipper nodded. "Well, in that case, let's get to work."


	8. Chapter 8

_Journal Entry 732_

_We now have one more day on the clock until the blood is done marinating. If I can find the dragon again, which I am confident I can, then we can cure it and hopefully get another lead on Wendy. I'm not far from finding her now._

_Nothing much else is happening at the Shack. Stan had to deal with this elderly couple yesterday who kept trying to break into the vending machine. You know, most people in Gravity Falls think that kids are the biggest problem, but really, it's more or less the other way around. Poor Soos got a bit of a talking-to after he laughed about it, though. Stan had respect for them, even if they didn't have much for him._

_Also, Mabel and Soos agreed to help me cure the dragon once we're done making the stuff. I'm pretty sure Stan has no interest in helping us at all, even if we do turn up something big. He's been getting slightly more irritable lately, and I think it's because of this dragon business. Mabel keeps telling me he's just worried about the thing hurting us, and I'm starting to believe her._

_A few days ago I found another set of tracks near Wendy's house. The dragon has been growing more and more active around there. I keep thinking of when it tried to make me go there, and how upset it got when I hurt it. It's very strange, and I wonder-_

Dipper stopped writing. He looked up at the window, the weird, uncomfortable feeling starting up in the top of his back again. There was someone outside. The young boy briefly debated over whether or not to check it out before deciding on the former. Whenever he got a hunch like this, it tended to turn out right.

The boy closed the journal and gently placed it on the bedside table. Mabel wouldn't bother him for putting it there now. She was at a sleepover with Grenda and Candy on the other side of town, leaving him to do what he wanted with their room. He scratched his head and remembered that Soos had gone home already. If anything dangerous was out there, he was on his own.

Stumbling down the stairs, Dipper grabbed a large stick beside the door. Stan, who was as always residing in his large yellow armchair, shifted a bit at the noise. The boy winced and tried to open the door quietly. The last thing he needed was for his great uncle seeing him stalking out the back door with a blunt object.

The young boy stepped out into the yard and shut the door softly. He relaxed a bit and held the stick tighter. Whatever was in the woods, frightening him as he recorded his findings would meet his match today.

However, the young detective was not prepared for what he found just five meters from the Shack.

The dragon was standing in the backyard, head lowered and wings tightly folded. It stared at him with brilliant green eyes, twitching its tail and hunching down in an attempt to make itself even smaller. As surprised as he was to see the dragon, confusion flowed through his mind as well. The creature standing before him hated being out in the open, even refusing to enter the yard the first night he had seen it. Why did it suddenly seem so determined to be there now?

He found himself dropping the stick and running up to the animal. However, as he approached it, the creature drew into the woods in an instant. He narrowed his eyes in bewilderment and trotted after it, feeling even more perplexed upon bumping into it in the bushes. What was it doing? It wasn't scared of him, but-

_Oh_, Dipper realized. The creature must have shown up in the yard to get his attention. That made sense. It obviously hadn't wanted to stay, but had waited until he started to get closer to it to retreat into the underbrush. It had… it had been looking for him. But why?

"What's up?" he asked. The creature gave him an upset look and shook itself. It suddenly dashed into the forest, causing him to run after it and trip over numerous things. "Hey, wait up!" he panted. The animal gave no sign it had heard him.

Finally, the creature slowed and allowed him to catch his breath. The young detective flopped to the ground and coughed, clutching his sides. The dragon huffed at him and nudged him back onto his feet, waving its tail in agitation. Once he was fit to stand, it took off again.

As the boy followed the reptile through the woods, he began to notice his surroundings with a bit of annoyance. He could see now where the creature was trying to lead him, and sighed. "We can't go here!" he croaked out when Wendy's home finally swam into view.

The dragon walked back to meet him, furling and unfurling one wing. Its eyes were wild, and he could see the same sort of anger it had possessed a few days ago flowing through it. It had brought him here for a reason.

"Why are we-" Dipper stopped as the dragon unfurled its other wing, letting a small, furry object drop to the ground. The young detective sighed when he saw it was the hat. The dragon took no notice of his slight annoyance as it reached down and grasped the article in its teeth, lifting it up for him to see.

"Look, I think it's cool you kept it, but I kind of have to be home now," Dipper tried to reason. "I have stuff to do." He narrowed his eyes. "I'm actually trying to get you out of that lizard skin, so you might want to let me go back now."

The dragon gave him the same look before starting to draw itself up to full height. The young boy stared at the ground and contemplated just leaving now when he realized that the animal wasn't just trying to stand up straight. His mouth opened a bit in shock as it settled onto its hind legs, towering over him. The hat, which was still clenched in its jaws, hung like a piece of prey.

The dragon stared down at him from around twenty five feet in the air, and he couldn't help but feel the slightest bit in awe. It was using purely the muscles in its tail to stay upright, like a kangaroo, and it had neatly positioned its forepaws against its stomach. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't just trying to impress him. It had a mission, and this was part of it.

"Ok, I'll stay," Dipper gave in. "What do you want?"

The dragon gave a low rumble and shook its head, brandishing the hat. The young detective sighed as it leaned to the side, towards Wendy's house.

"We can't go there," he nearly growled. "I'll get in trouble, and I don't even want to think about what Dan will do to you."

The dragon didn't even blink at his response. He glared up at it, feeling his annoyance starting to return. He widened his eyes a bit as the creature flung its head back, throwing the hat back onto the top of its muzzle. It snorted and lifted up its chin, making the hat slide back and catch on its horns.

_What is it trying to do_?

The young detective gazed on in slight shock as the creature waved its head a bit, nestling the hat on the top of its head. He could feel his breath coming a bit faster. How did it know that people wore hats like that? How did it even know what a hat was? Why was it even trying to put it on?

Still in shock, Dipper felt himself crumple to his knees. It felt like too much to process, but the dragon wasn't done yet. It tried to stand up straighter, balancing itself on its tiny feet, but slipped back onto its haunches again before giving up. It looked down at him, careful not to dislodge the hat, and made the strangest noise that the young boy had ever heard.

It was like a cross between a chirp, a whimper and the garble you would hear through a staticky radio. The dragon continued make it loudly, while strangely moving its forepaws about. Dipper was dumbstruck.

After what seemed like about a minute of the baffling display, the dragon sank back onto all fours and gave him a hopeless look. The young boy couldn't speak. The creature looked like it was trying to sigh before it started to abruptly scratch the ground. Dipper craned his neck to look at the markings, but the dragon kept growling and spreading sand over them each time it finished. It was almost as though it were a picky first grader, trying to have neat handwriting and scratching away every failed attempt.

Suddenly, it began to dawn on the young detective that maybe perhaps the animal _was_ trying to write. The way it moved its paws was uncoordinated and shaky, but at the same time, he could see the dragon looked as though it were struggling to remember something. Perhaps the human inside was trying to communicate with him, and just couldn't write!

He unfroze and reached forward, batting the dragon's paw away from erasing another attempt. Walking around to the creature's point of view, he found himself discouraged to find that the markings were worse than his own handwriting. However, he felt his heart give a jolt when he spotted one that bore an incredible resemblance to the letter D.

"Are you trying… Are you trying to write?" he found himself choking out. The dragon uneasily murmured something and looked away.

He got down onto his knees and traced his finger through the marks in the rocky earth. They were haphazard, much to his discouragement, but he couldn't just brush away the sight of the one that looked so much like his first initial. He peered into the dust like an archeologist and tried to make believe that he could read the other markings like some sort of prehistoric code.

The creature behind him sunk into a resting position and let out a mournful rumble. His gaze snapped back to look at it, following its eyes to find it was staring directly at the cabin. As surprised and now sad he felt, he couldn't help but notice the overwhelming look in the dragon's eyes. He stood up and tried to read it before the emotion hit him.

Longing. The dragon was longing.

Though the mystery-solving part of Dipper's mind was already trying to kick into gear, the emotional part had taken over completely. To see such a powerful look, burning through the creature's expression as though it were everything and the only thing the dragon thought about, made his heart clench. He could feel his breathing speeding up, and he realized he was backing away from the animal. Still, the dragon's gaze didn't waver.

The scientific part of his brain was working in overdrive now, connecting different answers and trying desperately to grasp onto why the creature looked so miserable and hopeful at the same time. The feelings burned through him, shocking him. He shouldn't have such a reaction over a creature that had torn apart the back of his house. But at the same time, something about the animal held itself was making everything start to work within his head.

_It's as though I'm only missing one thing_, Dipper thought to himself. He pondered over every last memory he had with the creature, trying to make sense of the insane whirlwind that was one piece away from stopping.

He recalled how it had given him his vest. He recalled how it had carried him home tenderly, though refusing to enter his backyard. He remembered how it have grieved over the hat as though the wearer had been family. He remembered how weeks later, it still carried the article beneath its wing. He remembered how it had attempted time and time again to lead him to Wendy's cabin. He recalled how it had gone into his yard, seeming to risk whatever it was so intent on keeping in order to get his attention. He recalled how it had eaten as though it hadn't eaten in years. He recalled how it felt, how it cried.

It had rescued him. It had taken the last remains of his friend and cared for them. It had broken his heart over and over, making him look over the place where his older co-worker had lived once. It had caused him fear. It had caused him pain. It had caused him happiness in an increasingly darkening world.

And suddenly, everything clicked.

The dragon. The dragon wasn't a dragon at all. His friend had been standing beside him, begging for him to recognize her, the entire time.

"W-Wendy?" Dipper stuttered. The enormous creature's head slowly turned to meet his gaze. He felt as though his heart was about to burst from his chest, the blood pounding in his ears and his limbs beginning to shake. "You're… you're W-Wendy, aren't y-you?"

He knew the creature couldn't understand what he said. And know he knew why.

"You've been here the whole time," the young detective choked out. He realized that the animal crouching before him was starting to let the longing leave its eyes, powerful hope taking its place. It stood up fully and stared down at him, letting the hat slip down its muzzle and onto the ground in front of the trembling boy. Wordlessly, he picked it up.

"Wendy, if you can understand any part of me in there, then lean down," he croaked, motioning with his hand so that she could see. Though the creature seemed baffled by the words at first, he felt his breath catch in his chest when she obediently dipped her head. Dipper stood on his tiptoes and placed the hat between her crown of horns. She lifted her head again, shifting from side to side as though trying to get the feeling of it.

"You're Wendy!" he finally cried, causing his companion to jump up in shock. She whipped her head around, and for the first time, he could confirm that the feeling blazing behind her eyes was true delight. The dragon made a loud shrieking noise in return, stamping its feet and spreading its wings. The creature flapped, and the boy finally knew why she could not fly. She had never learned how.

Dipper felt the pure adrenaline pouring through his veins, and he couldn't help but leap a bit as well. He hadn't felt so happy for months. The new discovery was setting his insides alight, making him feel as though he could live forever. The excitement was taking his breath away.

After a few triumphant jumps, the dragon, which he now knew had a name, settled back down only to get an abrupt hug from the small boy. His phrases were muddled and his swift breathing was making it hard to understand, but among his jumbled words he was repeating the same three over and over again. _I missed you, I missed you, I missed you, I missed you _**_so much_**…

The warm embrace seemed to be making the dragon giddy. The boy giving it nearly choked in shock as the creature's tail snaked around him, returning the gesture warmly. He wanted to stay there forever, knowing his best friend was underneath the thick layers of scale and muscle. Of course, he did try to, as did Wendy.

But alas, all great moments must come to an end. Dipper looked up as a fat droplet of rain landed on his nose. The dragon shook herself as a few splattered across her rusty skin. The two looked at each other, a look of amused hopelessness coming over their faces at it started to pour.

"It's raining," Dipper pointed out helpfully. The dragon snorted at him and pulled away, laughter in her eyes. Even though he knew she couldn't possible have known what he had said, something was telling him she more or less got the message. He smiled before feeling a small but sad thought come into his mind. "I… I guess I have to go home now."

The creature mumbled something nonsensical and reluctantly pulled out of the embrace. She started to walk away, thick streams of rain pouring down her slick, red sides. "Hey, wait!" Dipper shouted. She turned. "I'm still going to see you tomorrow! I'll have the cure ready!" After a moment of thought, he added, "I'll have Mabel bring you some clothes!"

If dragons could smile, Wendy would probably be doing so. She shook out her wings, now soaked with water, and rumbled happily before retreating into the forest. Dipper excited waved until she was completely out of sight before sitting down in the water-saturated ground with a splat.

"I found her!" he found himself screaming. A grin was breaking across his face, making his heart swell and eyes sparkle. Every part of him seemed so alive all of a sudden, as though he was waking from a terrible dream. He felt like singing. _His best friend was alive_.

The boy was reminded of his current situation by a boom of thunder, and quickly scampered out of the mud. His shorts were now completely soaked, but he could do nothing more than laugh. Every negative thought had been banished from his body. Dipper ran through the rain, calling out in pure joy as he almost flew back to the Mystery Shack. Mabel and Soos had to hear the good news.


	9. Chapter 9

The boy burst into the backyard, his clothing completely covered in mucky rain. He was trying to call out the names of his sister and friend, but every attempt ended in a loud squeak. This entertaining display, however, managed to catch the attention of Stanford Pines, who could easily hear the screeches from inside the house.

Stan opened the door just as Dipper flopped onto the doorstep, panting and grinning ear to ear. His great uncle's eyes widened. He clearly couldn't recall the last time his great nephew had looked so… elated. "What'd you find?" he questioned hoarsely.

"We… Wen…. Dragon… She's… Dragon…" Dipper choked out, his smile not faltering for a second. "Wendy… Dragon… Wendy's dragon…"

Stan rose an eyebrow. Secretly, the young detective at his feet knew he could probably speak in full sentences if he needed to, but had a tiny pinch of worry in his gut that his "grunkle" would dismiss it as him being far too tired and send him off to bed. Instead, Stan just sighed a bit and stood out of the way, letting his exhausted and ecstatic family member across the threshold. "That's nice, kid. Why not you go upstairs and, I dunno, write about it or something."

"Thanks!" the boy squealed, startling his great uncle a bit. He got to his feet and sprinted up the steps. First he needed to call Mabel - or maybe Soos, since he wouldn't be as busy, and tell them all about what happened. Then he needed to record this historical day in his journal for the future generations to learn from. After that, he would most likely go downstairs and stare at the vat of blood, waiting for it to finish curing. He couldn't wait until he saw the face of his best friend once again.

As soon as the young detective reached his room, he pulled his cellphone out of the mess of blankets on his bed and typed Soros's number in with lightning speed. The phone rang three times, each set making him more and more impatient. Finally, the man-child picked up.

"Hey, dude, what's up?" Soos asked, sounding cheerfully tired. Dipper took a deep breath and almost shrieked the answer through the phone.

"THE DRAGON'S WENDY!" he shouted, gripping his own knee so hard it turned an unhealthy shade of red. As soon as that had been emitted from his system, he started to rapidly rock back and forth on his bed, cradling the phone to his ear and occasionally letting out excited little squeaks. As he expected, Soos reacted a bit confusedly, but definitely sounded more awake than before.

"Wait, the big red dragon that saved you when you busted your leg?" he asked. The boy on the other end could hear the mounting interest in his voice. "You think it's actually Wendy?"

"I know so!" Dipper cried. "She tried to write my name in the ground! And she wore Wendy's hat! _And she listened to me_!"

Soos sounded a little bit hesitant. "Um… you sure that means that Wendy's actually a dragon?" he asked. "I mean, it could just really want to be your friend. I wouldn't blame it."

"Soos, it all adds up," Dipper continued, defending his theory fiercely. "The reason the dragon can't fly is because she never learned how, and I found her clothes all torn up in the riverbank because she must have ripped them off when she was transforming!"

"Yeah, but then why hasn't she tried to come home, or go to the Shack?:

"I have an answer for that, too," the young detective responded. "Wendy's smart, right? Well, she must have known that Manly Dan hates the supernatural even more than Grunkle Stan does! If she had tried to come near her house, he would have shot her!" After a moment's cogitation, he added in a slightly quieter tone, "And I don't even want to think about what Grunkle Stan would make us try to do to her."

He could almost hear Soos scratching his head on the other end of the line. "Ok, I believe you, dude," he finally replied. "I can't come over right now, but I'll call Mabel and tell her to call you. Maybe she can spare some time."

"Thanks man," Dipper replied, honestly relieved. He wiped off his brow and flinched slightly at the bare feeling of his hair. When all this was over, he was going to get Grunkle Stan to fork over a new hat. The young boy sighed as he heard Soos cheerfully say goodbye and hang up, and folded up the phone. He heard the door creak, but it was only Waddles, presumably hunting for Mabel.

"Tomorrow, little guy, I am going to see Wendy again," he vowed aloud to the pig. Waddles snorted and curled up at the foot of his bed, staring with an almost lonely look over at Mabel's empty cot. Despite his ecstatic feelings, Dipper felt a tiny prick in his heart at the animal's slight sadness, and reached down to pat his head.

It was around two minutes before Dipper's phone started to ring. "Yeah?" he asked, clicking the answer button. He was greeted by a loud series of shouts on the other end.

"WENDY'S A DRAGON? WENDY'S THE DRAGON? BROSEPH, WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL ME IMMEDIATELY? THIS IS AMAZING!"

"I know, right?!" Dipper replied, feeling the happy emotions starting to arise once again. "That cure that we thought was going to get us answers - all along, it was going to solve the mystery entirely, and not just help!"

"This is so cool!" his sister yelled. "We need to go out and find her again! Now!"

As eager as Dipper was to run back out into the woods and do just that, another clap of thunder crashed outside, making him think otherwise. "Uh, Mabel, hate to break it to you, but it's raining," he joked. "I can't go out and look for a dragon at night, in the rain, in a notoriously haunted woods."

"Well, you better be working on that cure then!" Mabel called. "First thing tomorrow, all three of us are going out and curing Wendy!" The words made Dipper smile.

"I gotcha. See you tomorrow!" he called through the phone. His sister replied happily before hanging up. As soon as he was off the line, he ran downstairs to the basement, where the small vat of blood was marinating with several large pieces of rosemary.

"One more day," he found himself saying, before correcting himself. "Or, night." The young detective rested on the ground, not caring about the sudden cold of the concrete. Sure, he was wet, but he would dry off soon. The cold air of the air conditioning didn't reach down here anyway.

Dipper soon felt himself growing sleepy, despite the flurry of excited and delighted feelings inside him. Half of him wanted to go back upstairs and read before crashing on top of his covers, but the other half wished to stay here and watch the pieces of rosemary disintegrate and fall to the bottom of the jar. The latter soon won out, and he found himself growing more accepting of sleep as his eyelids drooped.

The boy soon slumped to the floor, curling up inside his vest and listening to the faint sound of the building creaking above him. He would see Mabel and Soos tomorrow, and they would help him find Wendy again. That thought within itself brought a small twinge of hope into the young detective's soul, and he found himself smiling as he drifted away.

That night, Dipper had a dream. He dreamt that he was standing on top of a hill, surrounded by an endless sea of thick pine trees. Everything was strangely blurred, and bits of the sky and ground were white in strange places, fading away to nothingness as though the world was falling apart. However, this metaphor didn't come to mind as the young detective realized that there was a figure in front of him.

The figure was tall, looking down on him. She wore a green flannel shirt and slightly torn up jeans, with oversized boots and a trapper's hat. Dipper found himself lazily smiling at the equally grinning form of Wendy, preserved in memory perfectly. Not a single detail was off.

"It's good to see you," the boy found himself saying. He could remember the events of the day, but they seemed far away now, as though they were deep in the past. Strangely, there were memories of what had happened after, but they were… white. White like the missing pieces of ground and sky. They were blurred away. All he knew at the moment was that it had been a long time since Wendy had been a dragon.

"Nice to see you too, dude," Wendy replied, taking off her hat and fluffing it as though it were a pillow. She knelt down and looked him directly in the eyes, placing a hand on his shoulder. Dipper felt his heart speed up before a bit of red entered his cheeks. His friend laughed. "I'm glad you found me."

The young detective laughed with her, though he wasn't sure why. Suddenly, he noticed that Wendy's knee was white. "Um, Wendy, what's up with your knee?" he asked, realizing his voice had a strange echoing quality all of a sudden.

She looked down, and to his increasing interest, her hand began to fade to white as well. "Oh, boo! You're waking up, man."

Dipper's expression faltered. "Wait, I am? This is a dream?"

"Of course it is, doofus," Wendy chuckled. "I'm still a dragon."

The young detective sighed. "I can't believe it." He felt the lumberjack girl lift up his chin before looking him in the eyes and reaching for his hat.

"Hey, hey, buddy," she comforted. "You're going to do it. Just don't give up, no matter what happens. Ok?"

"Ok, Wendy," Dipper stuttered. He smiled and blushed as she removed his hat and replaced it with her own. He vaguely remembered how they used to do that before she went missing, and nostalgia pricked him. She placed a hand over his heart and settled down next to him, slowly fading into the everlasting white that was taking hold of the landscape.

Dipper awoke with a gasp. The dream, as weirdly misty and vague as it was, was still fresh in his mind. He could make out the smiling form of Wendy in his mind's eye before everything came rushing back to him. Turning to face the jar of rosemary, the young detective had to stifle a shriek of excite when he realized the herbs floating in it were completely gone. The cure was ready.

The boy stumbled to his feet and sprinted up the steps, passing the shocked form of his great uncle as he dashed through the kitchen. "Whoa, kid, where are you going?" Stan asked, grabbing the thankfully-closed carton of juice he had dropped.

"Finding Soos!" the boy replied, skidding out the door. The Shack's handyman should be here by now. What time was it, eight? Seven thirty? The guy usually got here so early that Dipper could see him before the sun rose. The young detective's heart gave a little leap when he caught sight of the man-child, who was taking out the trash.

"Dipper!" Soos cried, dropping the bag and just barely managing to stop the boy from crashing into him with his arms. Dipper looked up, a gigantic grin upon his face.

"The cure's done!" he burst out. The smile on the face of his co-worker was enough to make him jump for joy. Soos yanked his hat firmly on his head and watched as Dipper began to do a weird combination of pacing, skipping and staring into the woods in front of him. "Have you seen Mabel anywhere?" he asked suddenly, coming to a stop.

"She called me and said she was on her way back from the sleepover," Soos replied. "We should be all set to go out and find the dragon."

Dipper nodded. "You want me to go get the jar?"

Soos seemed to consider this for a moment before nodding. "Yeah. As soon as she gets here, we can go out."

The young detective returned the nod, noticeably pleased with the decision. However, his expression faltered a bit when he looked up at the cloudy sky. "The forest is going to be pretty dark, though," he observed. "We might have trouble finding it."

He heard a chuckle beside him. "Dude, are you kidding me? That thing's like a big red beacon."

Dipper nodded, though still not entirely convinced. However, his thoughts and misgivings were interrupted as he heard a loud screech of tires in the driveway. "Thanks for the ride!" Mabel's voice sounded from around the bend, and the boy winced as the tires screeched again, this time fading into nothingness.

Mabel came running around the corner of the Mystery Shack, her face shining with delight and the remains of what looked like glitter. "Dipper!" she cried out, throwing her arms around him and nearly suffocating him with her incredibly poofy sweater. He gagged a bit, but couldn't help but smile. The gang was together. They could finally go hunting.

"Hi Mabel," he replied, gently pushing her away. Soos grinned, standing beside her in front of him. All of a sudden, Dipper felt put on the spot. His sister and his friend were lined up before him, awaiting instruction.

"Alright, team," he began in a businesslike fashion. "We're going to find Wendy and cure her. Soos, I need you to get the jar of antidote and bring it up here."

"Gotcha, dude!" Soos said, scurrying off to the basement. The overall situation suddenly brought upon a sense of déjà vu to the young detective, before he realized that a near-identical version had taken place when the dragon first attacked the Shack. As uncomfortable as the boy felt being in Stan's place now, he continued to dish out the instructions.

"Mabel, I need you to go get the biggest sweater you have in your entire suitcase," he continued. His sister stood up for a half a second, her arm raised in a salute, before her eyes narrowed.

"Why do you need a sweater?" she asked, slowly crossing her arms and giving her brother a suspicious look. "You aren't going to use it to trap Wendy, are you?"

Dipper gained a wide-eyed look. "Oh, no!" he responded, putting out his hands. "Um… I just thought she might want some clothes when she's back to normal. You know, since she isn't exactly wearing any now…"

Mabel seemed to think this over for a moment before her eyes widened like her twin's. "Oh," she agreed. "Yeah. Ok. Be back in a second, broseph!" She scampered through the door, and he could hear her ascending the stairs at a speed he could only dream of rivaling.

Soos soon came out of the same door, carefully holding the jar full of blood. The herbs and juices had long since dissolved into the liquid, creating a foul-smelling but effective cure. Dipper couldn't help but feel a little jittery around the tiny container of fluid that held Wendy's destiny within it. The color wasn't helping much either - with the antidote being a deep reddish-brown.

He heard Mabel coming back down the stairs before she actually came into sight. However, Soos jumped a bit as she barrelled through the doorway, an enormous sweater in hand. "Why do you even have that?" he found himself asking. Sure, all the better for Wendy, but still, the thing was maybe a little smaller than her sleeping bag.

"I tried to make a sweater for a bear," Mabel answered as-a-matter-of-factly. She scratched her chin, obviously recalling the experience. "I never actually managed to get the bear in it, though."

Dipper winced a bit at the thought. However, he was soon once again distracted as his team looked to him, ready for the next command.

"Soos, can you promise me you won't lose that jar?" he asked, before immediately feeling a twinge of regret. He thought they had resolved the whole Soos-idiot thing when they fought the pterodactyl two years ago. Despite this, the handyman grinned at him forgivingly and nodded. Upon hearing this reassurance, Dipper straightened up and continued his spiel. "Ok, Mabel, you look out for footprints. Soos, you try to listen for calls. I'll lead."

The members of the team nodded. The young detective felt his heart soar a bit at the gestures, and he blurted out the line he had been saving for last. "Let's go find Wendy!"

Half an hour later, the team had about thirty percent less enthusiasm and a hundred percent less energy.

They had charged into the woods like a mighty army, running through the forest despite their weakening states of body, and only begun to slow down when they reached the alpine terrain. Mabel was so hot that she had tied her sweater around her waist along with the larger one for Wendy, and Soos looked as though her were about to drop the jar. As for Dipper, he didn't have the strength or the dignity-sacrificing courage to describe how sweaty his shirt was. "I'm sure we'll find something soon," he tried to encourage his friends, wincing as his words slithered out like dying snails.

Suddenly, Soos's eyes narrowed a bit. He cupped a hand around his ear before his eyes widened, a fearful expression on his face. "Uh, dudes?" he asked. The twins both looked back at him. "You might want to hear this…"

Mabel and Dipper both gave the handyman a questioning glance before cupping their own hands around their ears. However, they heard nothing. "Soos, what's up?" Dipper asked. To his surprise, his friend was already running ahead. "Soos!"

The twins sprinted after their surprisingly quick coworker until they reached a ravine filled with branches and mud. Soos stopped, turning his head about before setting off again. Mabel let out a small noise of exasperation. "Soos, what's going on?" she called, panting as she and her brother tried to keep up.

"I think I hear something!" Soos cried back, finally stopping where a large rock overlooked another section of the forest. Suddenly, the noise that the man-child had been so worried about sounded, making the twins shiver.

It was a blood curdling screech, tearing apart the air like tissue paper. The sound was almost alien, but yet held a tiny bit of familiarity with it. With a sudden slam of dread, Dipper realized he had heard a similar noise from the dragon during their previous encounter. "Oh no," he whispered.

In silent agreement, all three began to run as fast as they could towards the source of the heart-wrenching cries, fighting back the urge to flee as they grew louder and louder. Dipper's heart was racing at what felt like million miles a minutes, the pounding visibly shaking his ribcage. As the silence was shattered by another terrible scream, he stumbled and hit the ground. Mabel barely took the time to help him up before resuming her frantic sprint.

Finally, the team reached the top of what looked like the hill to top all other hills. "We have to be close!" the young detective gasped, clutching his sides. Mabel scanned the landscape before her eyes widened with horror.

"Dipper," she whispered, poking him. He pulled himself off the ground and looked up at her. He could see that whatever had his sister fazed was clearly within Soos's sights as well. The man-child had the same disbelieving expression mixed with absolute grief.

Wordlessly, his sister pointed into the clearing below. Dipper's gaze followed the direction of her gesture before he saw one of the most bloody and heartbreaking sights he would probably ever see in his life.

******Below the three lay the dragon, a sharpened stick speared all the way through her wing.**


	10. Chapter 10

At first, nobody in the odd little group could breath, let alone speak. All of a sudden, the dragon cried out once again, breaking the silence and awakening the shocked souls of the three humans atop the ridge.

Dipper was the first to make any sort of noise. "Wendy!" he screamed, skidding down the hill and bloodying his knees in the process. His sister and friend were quick to follow, dashing after him and calling out. The young detective reached the bottom, abruptly stopping and making a face that seemed to portray a mixture of franticness and disgust. His companions sniffed before wincing much the way he had.

The air was filled with the stench of decay and drying blood. As panicked as the trio was about the dragon, the terrible smell kept them temporarily away. Dipper could feel his heart tearing when he realized the horrible scent was coming from the creature's wing.

"Oh, dude," Soos murmured. "She's probably been here for hours."

The twins could do nothing but nod. The young detective was close enough now to see that there was mixture of pus and blood caked all over the infected skin, and that the fluid had pooled on the ground below it. It was disgusting and distressing at the same time.

Mabel was the first one to make another move towards it. She rushed to the creature's side, Dipper on her tail, and started examining the wing like an experienced veterinarian. The dragon saw them and stopped calling out, letting its head slump to the ground in defeat. The young detective gagged and gasped when he saw several flies leave the wing upon Mabel approaching it. He sprinted to the dragon's head and started whispering into his vest.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh Wendy I'm _so sorry…_" he choked out under his breath. He heard the low, sad murmur of the great creature in return. The animal lifted its head, nuzzling him weakly.

Soos motioned to the boy from where he was standing beside the trap. Dipper looked up to where he was pointing, quickly analyzing the machine that held his best friend gruesomely captive. It was an ingenious creation, he grudgingly thought to himself in anger. The tripwire, which the dragon seemed to have set off with its head, was hooked up to a contraption rather like a catapult, but rather than shooting something into the air, the deadly device speared the poor animal that set it off. From the way the dragon was positioned, Dipper realized to himself that it had whipped out of the way of having its neck sliced through, but the wing had been speared instead.

"Dipper, we can't change her back until we get her out of here," Mabel called to him. "If we tried-" she cut herself off, wincing. Despite the tiny bit of curiosity that the young detective possessed, he was glad she didn't finish. She seemed to have already come to conclusion about what would happen, and from her expression, the boy could deduce that the stick would still remain caught inside her skeleton.

"We need to find a way to get this out of her then!" he cried. "Soos, can we move that without hurting her more?"

"I don't know, dude," Soos replied, looking over the trap. "The stick thing's actually buried into the ground underneath her wing, and the actual thing's held down by like, seven ropes." The man-child tugged on the taut restraints, only to be met by resistance. "We'd need somebody else to help out."

Dipper's breathing began to rapidly increase. "Well, we can't just leave her, she's _dying_!" he screeched. As the others stared on in shock, he continued, tears rushing down his face. "Her wing's already infected, and we don't have any kind of medicine! We need to get her out _now_!"

"Whoa, whoa, dude, we're not going to leave her!" Soos answered to his grief-racked friend. "But we need someone else to help us get the wood out of the ground!"

Dipper collapsed, hugging the dragon's muzzle. Mabel and Soos looked a bit guilty as they heard a loud sob. "We… we…" the young detective started to cough out. "Get her out… we need to get her out now…"

"We will," Mabel vowed, wiping away some of the pus-filled blood on the crusty skin of the wing. She walked over to her brother and pulled his swiss army knife from his backpack, making her way over to the trap. With several fury-filled slashes, the ropes restraining the machine lay in pieces on the ground.

Suddenly, the three heard a noise at the top of the ravine. Soos held his hands at his sides, ready to defend the twins, while Mabel bared the knife in front of her. Dipper started to moan under his breath. _Oh god, a predator finally smelled her blood… we're all doomed_…

Needless to say, all humans jumped a bit when Grunkle Stan stumbled out of the brush at the peak of the hill. The old man stared down at them, his mouth slowly opening in horror as he scanned the scene before him. Mabel lowered the knife, and Soos unclenched his fists. However, the young detective still felt every muscle within him tensed, as though there were still a threat.

"No," Stan choked out, rushing down to where his family and friend stood. "Oh god, no."

"We need your help getting the stick out of the ground," Dipper urged. "Come on, we need-"

"No, you don't understand," his great uncle rasped. Dipper fell silent. "I… I set this trap."

There was absolute silence in the clearing. The dragon looked at the four humans surrounding her blearily, while Mabel's mouth dropped open in shock. Soos took a step back, as though he couldn't believe what was before him. But the young detective at the center of it all was beginning to seethe with anger.

"You did this?!" Dipper yelled, clenching the fist that wasn't resting on the dragon's muzzle. "You… YOU-"

"I can explain!" Grunkle Stan quickly added, throwing his hands out in front of him. His great nephew quieted down for the moment. "I… I was just trying to protect you."

"What do you mean?" Mabel breathed, dropping the knife.

Her great uncle sighed. "Ever since that dragon showed up, it's given this family nothing but trouble," he began. "It was messing with our garbage and it tore apart our porch. Not to mention you hurt yourself badly trying to catch it." He pointedly looked at Dipper. "I just wanted the thing gone.

"I got some trapping advice from Dan and I set up this thing. If the animal was actually an animal, and not some crazy teenager in lizard skin, they wouldn't have felt a thing. The trap was supposed to be lightning fast. But," the old man stared into the dragon's eyes, "you thought otherwise."

A low whine came from the reptile's throat. Dipper wasn't sure whether or not Wendy was scared of Stan or experiencing more pain from her wing.

Their great uncle let his face fall into his hands. "I never thought about what would happen if you were right, kid," he whispered. "I swear, I never thought I would hurt her. Looks like I thought wrong."

There was absolute silence in the clearing. The only noise that Dipper could hear were the dragon's fading, ragged breaths, growing weaker and weaker. He was immediately reminded of what he needed to do. "Grunkle Stan," he started. "I… I know you never thought about hurting Wendy."

His great uncle looked up, a shocked expression upon his face. However, his great nephew continued. "But we need your help to save her now. We can still get her out of this trap and get her back to normal, but we need you to do it." He closed his eyes. "I swear, if you just help us with this, I promise I won't bring up where this trap came from ever again."

With a slight creaking noise, Stan stood up and walked over to where his family and friend were crouching. Dipper felt his heart jump a bit when the old man took hold of the huge stake impaled through the dragon's wing and started to push it upwards.

Soos rushed over to help his employer immediately, while Mabel started to help the creature move its wing down the shaft so that they would have an easier time removing it. Dipper sprinted from the animal's head, a whispered promise to return fluttering from his lips, and began to help his sister.

The wound was truly one of the most terrible things Dipper would ever see in his life. Part of the actual finger of the appendage had been caught in the path of the stick, so that torn muscle covered in orangish fluid stuck out of the hole as they dragged the wing downwards. He felt his stomach turn over and clench when they seemed to hit some sort of infected pocket in the skin, more dead cells pouring out from inside and getting on their fingers. Mabel was closing her eyes as she continued the procedure, and he heard her gag a bit when pus oozed onto her sweater.

Suddenly, the machine gave a promising creak. Stan and Soos were straining to lift the stake from the ground, and it seemed that they were finally succeeding. Mabel pushed the wing down as far as it could go before hitting one of the two men who were trying with all their might. Dipper realized that his breath was coming in quick gasps as the great spear was torn from the ground at last.

"Yes!" he cried, before covering his mouth. He let go of the wing, knowing Mabel could easily slide it off now that the stick was no longer in the ground. Orange liquids slowly trickled down his hands, and he flicked them in disgust.

"We still need to get the wing off, kid!" Stan yelled, his knees nearly buckling under the incredible downward push of the stake. Soos obviously wasn't doing much better. The young detective gave them an apologetic look and rushed to his great uncle's side, pulling the wing down the shaft of the stick along with Mabel.

Finally, the wing slid off of the stick with an honestly revolting dripping noise. As soon as the appendage was out of the way, Soos and Stan let go of the stick, flinching back as the spear smacked into the ground once again. However, the great effort had been worth it. Wendy was free.

The dragon's body slumped to the ground, the animal clearly worn out from the struggle. Her eyes were glazed over. The four humans crouched around her wing quickly realized that although she was no longer held captive by the sharp stick, she still was gravely injured.

Mabel was the first to make a move. "Dipper," she called. "Get that stuff ready." She gestured to the bottle of antidote they had made while running over and reaching into his backpack once again. The young artist whipped out the first aid kit stuffed at the bottom of the bag and rushed back to the wing. The other three could do nothing more than watch in awe. She moved with the speed of a superhero, pulling out a bottle of antiseptic and a tube of antibiotic and setting to work. As much as he had considered Mabel becoming some sort of artist when she grew up, Dipper now realized that she could probably make a living as a vet without too much trouble.

By the time that Dipper had fully shaken up and opened the jar of antidote, the dragon's wound had been cleaned of all manner of blood and bodily fluids and replaced with layers upon layers of antibiotic salve and bandages. Mabel stepped back from the injury, wiping away the thick sheen of sweat that had gathered on her forehead. She untied the oversized sweater from her waist and held it under one arm.

"You're up, kid," Stan murmured, stepping back. Soos followed, giving him room, while Mabel positioned herself a few feet from the wounded creature. All of a sudden, Dipper knew the focus was on him. Wendy's fate was literally in his hands.

Shakily, the boy knelt down to the creature's head and slowly reached to the side of her jaw. With some effort, he pried her mouth open. As soon as the creature got the message, she kept it that way, letting her tongue loll out and eyes close. Dipper hesitated a bit before pouring the cure into her maw, casting a look at his family and friend. Mabel gave him what could probably be described as an encouraging look, while Stan and Soos just seemed to be telling him to do it.

With a deep inhale of air, the young detective tilted the jar and slowly let the liquid inside splash onto her tongue. The dragon's eyes shot open, and she curled her lip back slightly at the foul taste. "It's ok, it's ok," Dipper murmured, fully turning the jar upside down so that not one drop was wasted. Grimacing almost comically, the creature swallowed the antidote.

The four humans stood, almost frozen, as though something were about to explode. The dragon made no changes, simply licking her lips and rubbing a paw against her tongue in disgust. They waited for perhaps a minute before the young detective announced, "Um… it said it could take around five minutes for the effect to kick in."

The humans let out of the breath they had all been holding in and seemed to relax a bit. Mabel walked a bit closer to the titanic reptile and started scratching her behind the horns. Despite the obvious pain her wing was in and the remaining taste of herbs in her mouth, a loud purr erupted from the dragon's throat.

Dipper stood and simply observed the sight. This would thankfully be the last time he saw Wendy in dragon form, maybe meaning the last time he would ever see a dragon. He remembered that according to Stan, the natural ones hated all manner of humans and most enchanted ones were simply deer and squirrels. However, he was quite pleased to find that his last memory of the creature would be of it purring while his sister smiled.

Finally, the antidote seemed to start working. The dragon's purr faded and Mabel stepped back. The creature seemed to be trying to make herself smaller, folding her wings tightly against her back and her tail wrapped firmly around one of her hind legs. Then the four realized that she was actually shrinking.

The creature's scales were smoothing out, her tail retreating into her back and her wings seeming to melt into her spine. Her hind legs made a few clicking noises as they rearranged the bones into a human skeletal structure, and the deep rusty color faded from her skin. A large mess of red hair grew from the back of her skull, replacing her horns and nearly covering up her entire back as she shrunk back to the size of a tall teenager.

The last movement from the creature in front of them was a sort of sliding noise as her claws retracted back into her fingers and toes. With the transformation complete, the bare human flopped onto the ground. Dipper's heart leaped when he heard her gasp and start to breath.

It was as though everything was frozen as Mabel walked forward and pulled the huge sweater she had brought over Wendy's head, helping her arms through the sleeves. The short pants and wheezes prevented her from saying anything, but the expression on the teen's face was one of complete shock. The girl stepped away from Wendy and tapped Dipper on the shoulder.

Suddenly, everything started to move again. Dipper, Soos and Stan all rushed to the exhausted teen's side, helping her into a sitting position and brushing the mud and blood from her body. Mabel walked over to the clump with Wendy's hat, which she had seemingly found on the ground next to the trap. The young artist placed the cap onto her friend's head.

Finally, Soos lifted up the limp girl with some help from Stan. Dipper reached up and grabbed hold of her slight bloody hand, hoping some of the warmth would sooth the shocked teen. Mabel took on a serious look and announced, "We should get her back home."

The three males nodded and started to make their way out of the ravine, with Mabel trotted alongside them. Despite the shock and overall seriousness of the situation, Dipper could feel his heart soaring as Wendy's pulse thumped reassuringly in her wrist. He felt lightheaded. After all this effort, after all the pain, he was finally seeing the face of his best friend once again.

They reached the Shack in around half an hour. Stan left immediately to call Dan, who would surely come storming into the house to retrieve his daughter when he heard the news. Dipper, Mabel and Soos all gathered around the gigantic yellow armchair, where the tired girl lay. Mabel pulled the sweater down slightly and looked over the bandaged hole in Wendy's back, which thankfully seemed to have stopped swelling and looked far cleaner.

Wendy's eyes seemed to be scanning her surroundings in a daze, though faint recognition flashed through her eyes whenever she saw one of the three other Mystery Shack employees standing around her. A few inaudible murmurs escaped her, though Dipper urged her over and over to stop trying to speak. At last she could understand his words, and she let her mouth close.

"I'm so sorry," the boy found himself whispering to her again. She reached out a hand and slowly placed it on his shoulder, a tiny smile spreading across her face. He could see her once again struggling to form words, clicking her teeth together and experimentally touching her lips with her tongue. Mabel giggled slightly when a loud growling noise escaped the teen, who immediately looked embarrassed.

"She's still not really out of dragon mode, is she?" asked Soos, observing the way the girl's eyes darted in an animal-like fashion. Wendy glared at him, much to the excitement of the twins.

"Be quiet," she croaked back, startling the three. A look of pure elation spread across Dipper's face, and he made a questionable squeaking noise.

"You're ok!" he cried, though Mabel reached out and stopped him from hugging her. A slight warning look crossed his sister's face, telling him that the lumberjack girl was still very much injured. The young detective looked sheepish and stepped back, grinning ear to ear as the teen in front of him pulled herself into a sitting position. She smiled, the happiness showing through the exhaustion.

"'Course I am, doofus," she replied weakly. She licked her lips again and looked around, her eyes focusing on the doorway. The gaze of the three others surrounding her followed her stare, spotting Stan.

"Dan's on his way," the great uncle announced, walking into the room and settling beside the twins. He turned to face Wendy, his expression nearly impossible to read. As soon as his words had settled in, the atmosphere became unbearably silent. Dipper clutched the girl's hand tighter.

Soos finally broke the uncomfortable feeling of quiet. "Well, guess you get to stay with us until then," he concluded with a small smile, glancing at Wendy and leaning onto the wall. This time, the lack of noise that followed felt almost natural. The young detective found himself finally growing at peace within. Sure, his best friend would soon be taken away, but this time, he knew when and whether he would see her again.

_Just relax_, he told himself, closing his eyes. _Wendy's back. The gang is back together again_.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, there you have it. That's the technical end of Dragon Pines, though you'll find there's an epilogue after this (that's admitted embarrassingly short). Also, I'm starting work on that prequel I talked about earlier. You guys better be ready for a wave of insanely fluffy fanfiction.**

**To everyone who's supported me here, thank you, once again, so much. I literally couldn't do this without you. Every review, every favorite, counts more than you can imagine. Also, if anyone wants to suggest ideas for the Christmas oneshot I'm working on, I'm open. (Since I honestly really haven't begun writing yet.)**

**Until then, peace out, dudes! Enjoy the epilogue!**


	11. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

* * *

><p>"You almost ready, Dipper?"<p>

The fourteen year old turned around to face the red-haired lumberjack on his other side, who was zipping up a gigantic backpack. She held out a hand and the young detective tossed her a swiss army knife. "Ready as I'll ever be," he replied.

His friend smiled and whipped the pack onto her back. She gestured over to his own stuffed bag, which he quickly walked over and put on. "Well, come on then, dude, let's go!"

The young detective found himself grinning ear to ear as he was lead to the golf cart waiting on the other side of the Mystery Shack. However, he saw something in the grass that made him stop suddenly. "What the…"

Wendy stopped, giving him a quizzical look. "What's up?" she called. Wordlessly, Dipper beckoned her over and pointed at the tiny glass jar, half buried in the mud. After a moment of squinting, his friend finally said, "It's a jar."

"It's not just any jar," Dipper murmured. "It's that jar we used to hold the antidote stuff from a year ago."

Wendy went quiet. He noticed her hands clenching her backpack strap tighter, the knuckles turning a faint pale. Even so, the bewildered expression didn't vanish.

After Wendy had been taken home, Dipper hadn't seen her for a few days. Apparently her father didn't take her to the hospital, claiming she could recover from the 'little cut' in her back on her own. As a result, she spent maybe three weeks more in bed than she would have had to with any serious medical attention. However, the Pines twins were allowed to visit her once she was fully awake and growing painfully bored.

The lumberjack girl had never really spoken about her experience as a dragon. Every time someone brought it up, she would somehow change the subject before she actually talked about remembering anything. It frustrated Dipper a bit, but he wasn't about to make his best friend in the whole world speak about something that made her uncomfortable and sad.

"You know, I never officially thanked you for getting me out of that," Wendy mused, breaking the silence. "So, you know, thanks. Thanks a bunch."

Dipper cracked a smile. "Just doing what I do best." He picked up the jar and started to head towards the recycling bin. Wendy dropped her pack into the golf cart and caught up with him. Surprising the boy a bit, she began to talk.

"Being a dragon was super weird," she admitted. "Everything was so small, and having wings hurt. I mean, I always wished that I had a tail when I was little, but man," she made a face. "I don't want one ever again."

"I know what you mean," Dipper grimaced. "How did you even really eat? I mean, when you weren't stealing our trash."

The lumberjack sent him a playful glare. "Don't bring that up," she warned. "Anyway, I killed a few innocent deer and ate roadkill." Noticing how much her friend shivered, she added, "Only the fresh stuff."

The young detective remained silent, though he quickly tossed the jar into the bin and started back towards the cart. He looked up at the teen beside him, who looked a bit lost as she settled into the seat of the vehicle. "Why did you tear apart the porch?" he suddenly burst out, quickly covering his mouth in embarrassment.

His friend looked over at him and closed her eyes. "I want to get your attention without risking injury," she sighed. "I couldn't just hang out in the backyard, because God knows what Stan would have done. I knew you would come looking for something, and you would eventually find me." She narrowed her eyes. "I really wasn't thinking straight in that scale suit."

"No, it's a good idea," he quickly assured her. "But why couldn't you have just found me in the woods?"

"You would have peed your pants," Wendy answered, effectively ending the conversation as she started the cart.

"Can't argue with that."

The old cart sputtered to life, jumping a bit and startling the two teens inside. Wendy laughed a bit at her own joke, thinking over the reddish look on her buddy's face. With a cloud of pollution and the squealing of tires, the pair roared off into the woods, on their way to their next adventure.


End file.
